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THE 

TWO NOBLE KINSMEN 

WRITTEN BY 
THE MEMORABLE WORTHIES OF THEIR TIME 



M? JOHN FLETCHER and 

-^ \ Gent. 

M^ WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE] 



EDITED, WITH NOTES 
BY 

WILLIAM J. ROLFE, Litt.D. 

FORMERLY HEAD MASTER OF THE HIGH SCHOOL 
CAMBRIDGE, MASS. 



ILL US TJ^ A TED 



NEW YORK.:. CINCINNATI.:. CHICAGO 

AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY 



LIBRARY of CONGRESS 
Two Copies Received 

MAR 3 1906 

r, Copyrieht Entrv 
-BLASS ,<^ XXC. No. 






Copyright, 1883 and 1898, by 
HARPER & BROTHERS. 

Copyright, 1906, by 
WILLIAM J. ROLFE. 



TffO NOBLE KINSMEN. 



PREFACE 

Some of the ablest critics — Lamb, Coleridge, Charles 
Knight, Dyce, Swinburne, and others — believe that 
Shakespeare was one of the authors of The Two Noble 
Kifismen; and when I edited it, some twenty years ago, 
I was inclined to agree wath them. It is certain that 
the play had two authors ; that John Fletcher was one 
of them ; that the other was his equal, if not his supe- 
rior, in dramatic power and skill ; and that their joint 
production, whatever may be its history, is one of the 
best works of that golden age of the English drama. 
I am now fully satisfied that Shakespeare did not write 
a line of it ; but I have decided to retain it in the 
present edition, giving an impartial summary of the 
evidence and arguments for and against the theory 
that Shakespeare had a share in it, and leaving readers 
and students to decide the question for themselves. 



CONTENTS 



Introduction to The Two Noble Kinsmen 
The History of the Play . 
The Sources of the Plot 
General Comments on the Play 



The Two Noble 


Kinsmen . 


Act I . 




Act II . 




Act III . 




Act IV . 




Act V . 




Notes . 





Appendix : 

The Story as told by Chaucer 
The Time-Analysis of the Play 
List of Characters in the Play 



PAGE 

9 

9 

II 

13 

35 
37 
62 



140 
169 

258 

264 
26:; 



Index of Words and Phrases Explained 



269 




Theseus interrupting the Contest 




INTRODUCTION TO THE TWO NOBLE 
KINSMEN 

The History of the Play 

The Two Noble Kinsmen was first printed, so far as 
we know, in 1634, in quarto form, and with the follow- 
ing title-page : — 

" The Two Noble Kinsmen : Presented at the Black- 
friers by the Kings Maiesties servants, with great 
applause : Written by the memorable Worthies of their 

time ; 

( M.\ Johfi Fletcher, and ) 

( M^ William Shakspeare. j 

The play also appeared in the second (1679) edition 

of Beaumont and Fletcher's dramas, being one of " no 

fewer than seventeen plays more than were in the 

9 



lo The Two Noble Kinsmen 

former " (the first folio, of 1647), as the preface tells us. 
It was not admitted to the third and fourth Shakespeare 
folios (published after the appearance of the play in 
1634), nor to any other collected edition of Shake- 
speare until 1857. Somewhat earlier in the nineteenth 
century certain critics began to suspect a double 
authorship, and Lamb, Coleridge, De Quincey, and 
others, decided that the old title-page was correct in 
assigning a share in the work to Shakespeare. Shelley, 
however, in a letter to his wife, said emphatically, " I 
do not believe Shakespeare wrote a word of it." In 
1833 Mr. William Spalding published an elaborate 
analysis of the play, allotting to Shakespeare and 
Fletcher their respective portions, and Hallam, Dyce, 
and other critics and commentators became converts to 
his views. Dyce included the play in his edition, as 
Hudson did in his second edition, and it was inserted, 
at Furnivall's suggestion, in the '' Leopold " Shakspere 
(1877). But Spalding in 1840 "weakened" consider- 
ably in his opinions concerning the play, and later 
declared the problem of its authorship insoluble. Other 
critics who at first agreed with him have had a similar 
experience. For myself, at present I think it very 
doubtful whether Shakespeare had anything w^hatever 
to do with the play. Mr. Lee, however, in his Life of 
Shakespeare (1898), decides that "frequent signs of 
Shakespeare's workmanship are unmistakable." Some 
critics are of the opinion that Massinger wrote the parts 
that have been assigned to Shakespeare. 



Introduction ii 

The Sources of the Plot 

The story of the play, as the prologue states, is taken 
from Chaucer, who gives it in his Knightes Tale, He 
got it, as he acknowledges, from the Teseide of Boccac- 
cio, who calls it a very old story (" una antichissima 
storia "). The names in it indicate that it was origin- 
ally from the Greek (cf. Mr. Hales 's letter in the Lon- 
don Academy^ Jan. 17, 1874). 

It had been dramatized in English twice at least be- 
fore the time of Shakespeare, though there is no ground 
whatever for supposing that the authors of The Two 
Noble Kinsmen were indebted to either of the earlier 
plays. In 1566 a drama called Palceinon and Arcyte^ 
by Richard Edwardes, was performed before Queen 
Elizabeth at Oxford. Wood's account in the AihencE 
Oxonienses mentions the play several times, but the fol- 
lowing passages, communicated to Nicholls, the histo- 
rian of Elizabeth's Progresses, by Mr. Gutch, from 
Wood's MSS., are more detailed, and clearly show that 
Edwardes's play and the play before us must have 
differed so materially as to make it almost certain that 
the authors of the latter can have known nothing of the 
former. Part of the play was performed on Sept. 2, 
1566, when a scaffolding fell, and three lives were lost. 
Wood continues : " Sept. 4, 1566. At night the Queen 
was present at the other part of the play of Palcevion 
and Arcyte, which should have been acted the night 
before, but deferred because it was late when the 



12 The Two Noble Kinsmen 

Queen came from disputations at St. Mary's. When 
the play was ended, she called for Mr. Edwards, the 
author, and gave him very great thanks, with promises 
of reward, for his pains : then making a pause, said to 
him and her retinue standing about her, this relating 
to part of the play : ' By Palaemon, I warrant he dallieth 
not in love when he was in love indeed ; by Arcyte, he 
was a right martial knight, having a sweet countenance, 
and a manly face ; by Trecatio, God's pity, what a 
knave it is ; by Perithous, throwing St. Edward's rich 
cloak into the funeral fire, which a stander-by would 
have stayed by the arm with an oath, he knoweth his 
part, I warrant.' In the said play was acted a cry of 
hounds in the Quadrant, upon the train of a fox in the 
hunting of Theseus, with which the young scholars, 
who stood in the windows, were so much taken (sup- 
posing it was real), that they cried out, * Now, now ! — 
there, there! — he's caught, he's caught!' All which 
the Queen merrily beholding, said, ^ O, excellent ! those 
boys^ in very troth, are ready to leap out of the windows 
to follow the hounds ! ' . . . In the acting of the said 
play there was a good part performed by the Lady 
Amelia, who, for gathering her flowers prettily in a 
garden there represented, and singing sweetly in the 
time of March, received eight angels for a gracious 
reward by her Majesty's command," etc. 

Of the other old play we know nothing except (from 
Henslowe's Dia^y) that it was entitled Palamofi a?id 
Arsett, and was acted several times at the Newington 



Introduction 13 

Theatre in 1594. Collier conjectures that it was based 
upon the play of 1566, and that it was in turn remod- 
elled by Shakespeare, who introduced into it the matter 
afterwards '' employed by Fletcher in the play as it was 
printed in 1634; " but this is speculating rather wildly 
on the mere mention of a play in a manager's list. 

The origin of the underplot cannot be traced. There 
is no hint of it in Chaucer, and we have no reason to 
suppose that it came from the play of 1594. It may 
have been the invention of the authors. 

General Comments on the Play 

Brief reference has been made above to the opinions 
of eminent modern critics concerning the double author- 
ship of the play. They all agree that two hands are to 
be seen in it, and that one of these is Fletcher's cannot 
be doubted ; but whether Shakespeare had anything to 
do with it, and if so, how much, are questions on which 
they differ widely. 

Charles Lamb, in his English Dramatic Poets (1808), 
selects from this play nearly all of i. i, part of i. 3, and 
the dialogue between Palamon and Arcite before Emilia 
enters in ii. 2. This last scene, he says, *' bears indu- 
bitable marks of Fletcher ; the two which precede it 
give strong countenance to the tradition that Shake- 
speare had a hand in this play." These and other 
passages, he adds, '' have a luxuriance in them which 
strongly resembles Shakespeare's manner in those parts 



14 The Two Noble Kinsmen 

of his plays where, the progress of the interest being 
subordinate, the poet was at leisure for description." 

Coleridge, as reported in his Table-Talk (1833), said : 
" I have no doubt whatever that the first act and the 
first scene of the second act of The Two N'oble Kinsmen 
are Shakespeare's ; " and later he writes (Harper's ed. 
of Works, vol. iv. p. 219): ''On comparing the prison 
scene of Palamon and Arcite, ii. 2, with the dialogue 
between the same speakers, i. 2, I can scarcely retain 
a doubt as to the first act's having been written by 
Shakespeare." The construction of the blank verse, 
he adds, " proves beyond all doubt an intentional imita- 
tion, if not the proper hand, of Shakespeare. . . . On 
the other hand, the harshness of many of these very 
passages, a harshness unrelieved by any lyrical inter- 
breathings, and still more the want of profundity in the 
thoughts, keep me from an absolute decision." 

In 1833, Professor William Spalding, of Edinburgh, 
published a Letter on Shakespeare'' s Authorship of the 
Two Noble Kins?nen (reprinted by the New Shakspere 
Society, in 1876), which is an elaborate discussion of 
the subject. Furnivall gives the following abstract 
of it in his Introduction to the "Leopold" Shakspere 
(p. xcviii.) : — 

" Professor Spalding contrasts the broken and pause- 
ful versification of Shakspere with Fletcher's smoother 
end-stopped and double-ending lines. He finds in The 
Two Noble Kinsmen many of Shakspere's images and 
his very words, as well as the energy, obscurity, abrupt- 



Introduction 15 

ness, and brevity of his late plays, while in other parts 
of the play he shows that there is the diffuseness, the 
amplification, and delicacy of Fletcher. As instances 
of Shakspere's metaphors he quotes ' what man thirds 
his own worth ? ' * Let us be widows to our woes ; ' 
'Our kind air, to them unkind;' ' Her arms shall corslet 
thee ; ' ' unpang'd judgment ; ' 

" * Our Reasons are not prophets, 
When oft our Fancies are ; ' 

" * Give us the bones 
Of our dead kings that we may chapel them ; * 

and the like. Then he finds in one part of the play the 
active imagination of Shakspere, hardly ever indulging 
in lengthened description, whereas in other parts or 
scenes are Fletcher's poverty of metaphor and his 
romantic and picturesque descriptions. He contrasts, 
too, Shakspere's treatment of mythology with Fletcher's, 
and shows the difference in the two poets. Then he 
contrasts Shakspere's tendency to reflection, and his 
active and inquiring thought, his practical worldly wis- 
dom, the mass of general truths he puts into his writing, 
with the want of these characteristics in Fletcher. 
Shakspere's faults of conceit and quibbles, too, with 
their resistless force, he contrasts with the slow elegance 
and want of pointedness in Fletcher, who is also almost 
guiltless of plays on words. Then he shows how Shak- 
spere differs from Fletcher in his personification of 
Grief and Time, Strife and War, Peace and Love, 



t6 The Two Noble Kinsmen 

Mercy and Courage, Reason and Fancy, etc. He also 
shows what a firm grasp of imagery Shakspere has as 
contrasted with Fletcher, and again how the choice of 
the simple story must have been Shakspere's, who 
belonged to the old school, and not Fletcher's, who 
belonged to the new school of involved and invented 
plots. Shakspere relied on characterization and avoided 
spectacles. He kept in this play the two moving pas- 
sions of Love and Jealousy always in the front, which 
Fletcher could not have done. The harmony of its 
parts was, too, an idea beyond Fletcher's. The shrewd- 
ness and good sense of the characters were so likewise. 
And, on the whole, Professor Spalding concluded that 
Shakspere wrote act i., act. iii. sc. i, and act v. except 
sc. 2." 

Later, as mentioned above (p. lo). Professor Spalding 
modified his own early judgment. In the Edinburgh 
Review for July, 1840 (p. 468), he stated that his opin- 
ion " is not so decided as it once was ; " and in the 
same periodical for July, 1847 (P- 57^)' ^^ declared 
that " the question of Shakespeare's share in this play 
is really insoluble." 

Hallam doubted whether Shakespeare had a share in 
the play. He says {Literature of Europe^ vol. iii. p. 318, 
Amer. ed.) : '' The Two Noble Kinsmen is a play that 
has been honoured by a tradition of Shakespeare's con- 
cern in it. The evidence as to this is the title-page of 
the first edition ; which, though it may seem much at 
first sight, is next to nothing in our old drama, full of 



Introduction 17 

misnomers of the kind. The editors of Beaumont and 
Fletcher have insisted upon what they take for marks 
of Shakespeare's style ; and Schlegel, after * seeing no 
reason for doubting so probable an opinion,' detects the 
spirit of Shakespeare in a certain ideal purity which 
distinguishes this from other plays of Fletcher, and in 
the conscientious fidelity^ with which it follows the 
Knighfs Tale in Chaucer. The Two Noble Ki7ismen 
has much of that elevated sense of honour, friendship, 
fidelity, and love, which belongs, I think, more charac- 
teristically to Fletcher, who had drunk at the fountain 
of Castilian romance, than to one in whose vast mind 
this conventional morality of particular classes was 
subordinated to the universal nature of man. In this 
sense Fletcher is always, in his tragic compositions, a 
very ideal poet. The subject itself is fitter for him than 
for Shakespeare. In the language and conduct of this 
play, with great deference to better and more attentive 
critics, I see imitations of Shakespeare rather than such 
resemblances as denote his powerful stamp. The mad- 
ness of the gaoler's daughter, where some have imag- 
ined they saw the master-hand, is doubtless suggested 
by that of Ophelia, but with an inferiority of taste and 
feeling which it seems impossible not to recognize. 
The painful and degrading symptom of female insanity, 

1 Skeat remarks : " This ' conscientious fidelity ' is not always con- 
spicuous ; the authors follow Chaucer when they please. It is well worth 
remarking that the confusion in act iv. sc. 2, where the descriptions, 
copied from Chaucer, are applied to the wrong persons, occurs in a 
scene which was almost certainly written by Fletcher." 
TWO NOBLE KINSMEN — 2 



1 8 The Two Noble Kinsmen 

which Shakespeare has touched with his gentle hand, 
is dwelt upon by Fletcher with all his innate impurity. 
Can any one believe that the former would have written 
the last scene in which the gaoler's daughter appears 
on the stage? " 

In a foot-note Hallam refers to Spalding's Letter^ but 
intimates that he is not convinced by it ; and in a later 
note (1847), alluding to Dyce's concurrence with Spald- 
ing as to the share of Shakespeare in the play, he says, 
** The hypothesis of a joint production is open to much 
difficulty, which Mr. Dyce hardly removes." 

In April, 1847, ^ ^'^^7 ^ble paper on this question by 
Mr. S. Hickson was published in the Westminster Re- 
view (reprinted in the Transactions of the New Shaks, 
Soc. for 1874, p. 25 ^ fol.). The result of his inquiry is 
summed up thus : *' It is that the play of The Two 
Noble Kinsinen is one to which Shakespeare possesses 
a better title than can be p7'oved for him to Pericles ; 
that to him belong its entire plan and general arrange- 
ment : but that, perhaps for want of time to complete 
it by a day named, and probably by way of encourage- 
ment to a young writer of some promise, he availed 
himself of the assistance of Fletcher to fill up a portion 
of the outline." Mr. Hickson assigns to Shakespeare 
the whole of act i. except perhaps some twenty or thirty 
lines in sc. 2 ; act ii. sc. i ; act iii. sc. i and 2 ; act iv. 
sc. 3 ; and act v. except sc. 2} It follows that, with 

1 Mr. Hickson's and Professor Spalding's papers are both freely 
quoted in the Notes below. 



Introduction 19 

the partial exception of Arcite, every character, even to 
the Doctor who makes his appearance near the end of 
act iv., was introduced by Shakespeare. " We have 
here then," adds Mr. Hickson, '' not only the frame- 
work of the play, but the groundwork of each character ; 
in each case we find that Shakespeare goes first, and 
Fletcher follows ; and even then we find that the latter 
is the most successful in the parts where he had Chau- 
cer for a guide." 

Fleay {Trans, New Shaks. Soc. 1874, p. 61"^, and 
Manual, p. 172) confirms Mr. Hickson's division by 
metrical tests. The two prose scenes (ii. i and iv. 3) 
he assigns to Shakespeare, because " Fletcher never 
wTote prose in any of his plays." In the Shakespeare 
portion of the verse, the proportion of lines hav- 
ing double endings is only 10 in 35, while in the 
Fletcher portion it is 10 in 18. The former average is 
exactly that of the latter part of Shakespeare's career 
(the time of the Winter's Tale) ; while the latter exactly 
agrees with that deduced from an examination of all 
the undoubted works of Fletcher. Of lines consisting 
of only four feet, there is but one in the Shakespeare 
portion (1124 lines) ; but in the Fletcher portion (1398 
lines) there are 19. 

But in his Life and Work of Shakespeare (1886) 
Fleay changes his ground entirely. He says of the 
play : " There is no other evidence that Shakespeare had 
any hand in it except the opinions of Lamb, Coleridge, 
Spalding, Dyce, etc. These, on analysis, simply reiterate 



20 The Two Noble Kinsmen 

the old argument, * It is too good for any one else .' . . . 
With the highest respect, then, for the eminent aesthetic 
critics who hold that Shakespeare did write part of the 
play, I must withdraw my adhesion, and state my 
present opinion that there is nothing in it above the 
reach of Massinger and Fletcher, but that some things 
in it (ii. i, iv. 3) are unworthy of either, and more 
likely to be by some inferior hand, W. Rowley for 
instance. The popular instinct has always been on their 
side ; editions containing this play have not been 
sought after ; and had it not been known not to 
have been Shakespeare's, it would surely have been 
gathered up with the ' W. S.' plays in the Folio of 1663 ; '* 
that is, with those added in the second issue of that 
edition in 1664. 

Knight holds that '^ Fletcher, for the most part, wrote 
the scenes which the best critical opinions concur in 
attributing to him ; " and that '' he had a coadjutor 
who produced for the most part the scenes attributed to 
Shakspere, but this coadjutor was not Shakspere him- 
self." He then attempts to prove that Chapman was 
the second author ; but, so far as I am aware, he has 
had no follower in this opinion. 

Dyce says : ^* For my own part, I believe that 
Shakespeare wrote all those portions of the play which 
Mr. Spalding assigns to him, though I conceive that in 
some places they may have been altered and interpolated 
by Fletcher." He thinks that Shakespeare's contribu- 
tions to the play are " stamped everywhere with the 



Introduction 21 

manner of his later years,'' but they nevertheless 
existed before Fletcher's were written — " in other 
words, that the two poets did not work on it simulta- 
neously." 

Skeat, in his edition of T/ie Two Noble Kinsfne?i 
(Cambridge, 1875), accepts Hickson's division of the 
play as '' probably right in the main." He adds: 
**The only scenes that seem to me doubtful are iii. 2, 
iv. 3, and certain parts of v. i. These have all been 
claimed for Shakespeare, but I am not convinced about 
them. But in all the other scenes the marks of partner- 
ship are sufficiently distinct. It must surely be admitted 
that there were two authors ; that their respective por- 
tions have been rightly assigned to them ; and that one 
of those authors, the one who had the least to invent, 
was Fletcher. The whole of the real conduct of the 
play, the introduction of all the more important charac- 
ters, the beginning and the ending of the piece, are due 
to a greater mind and an abler artist. Why should we 
hesitate to suppose that that artist was Shakespeare ? 
... It is easy also to see the principle upon which 
the division of the play was made. Shakespeare took 
the more important share, began the play, started 
all the principal characters, and left Fletcher nothing 
to do but to fill up the easier portions, where he had 
Chaucer to guide him, or else had merely to continue 
what was begun, or lastly, could introduce a morris- 
dance and some countrymen by way of filling a gap. 
Obviously, the original division of labour was, that they 



22 The Two Noble Kinsmen 

should write the alternate acts ; Shakespeare taking the 
ist, 3d, and 5th acts, and Fletcher the 2d and 4th. 
This was slightly varied in the end, but the principle 
was not really altered. Shakespeare wrote all the ist 
act, the first and most important part of the 3d act, and 
all of the 5th act but one scene; but he also helped 
Fletcher (in all probability) by starting the 2d act 
for him ; which Fletcher repaid by contributing a 
scene to act v." 

After referring to the opinion once held by Knight 
that '' Shakespeare left a portion of the play, which, 
after his death, was completed by Fletcher," Skeat re- 
marks that '^ there is really a sort of truth in it," and 
adds : '' I cannot resist the conviction that the play, in 
the exact form in which we have it, was revised by 
Fletcher (or another ? ) after Shakespeare's death ; and 
that he did to some extent, here and there, alter some 
phrases at his pleasure. I think he may have done so, 
for instance, in v. i ; and perhaps the Song at the very 
beginning of the play is such a piece as he might have 
added. The Prologue and Epilogue may be his ; or 
indeed they may have been added by a third per- 
son. . . . The simple and natural order of things 
would be somewhat of the following description. The 
authors would roughly divide the work, write contem- 
poraneously, fit the scenes together, and the play would 
be acted. In case of repetition after an interval of 
time, nothing would be more natural than that it should 
be to some extent revised ; and for the revision, one 



Introduction 23 

author would suffice. This is, accordingly, the theory 
which I offer, and which agrees, in the main, with the 
general result of the opinions of most critics. Suppose 
Shakespeare and Fletcher to have written The Two Noble 
Kinsmen in conjunction in 161 2, and the play of Henry 
VIII, in 1613; after which Shakespeare retires from 
his labours, not to live long afterwards. The play 
proving a favourite one — as seems to have been the 
case — Fletcher revises it, not altering much perhaps, 
but adding a few lines here and there ; and at last, 
after he also is dead, the play is printed from an acting 
copy, representing it in its latest form. This will account 
for all the circumstances of the case, whilst merely re- 
quiring the supposition that things took their natural 
and easiest course." 

Prof. J. K. Ingram, in a paper read before the New 
Shakspere Society, Nov. 13, 1874 (see Transactions^ 
p. 442 foL), says: ^^The answer to the question. Who 
was the author of the non-Fletcherian portion of the 
play ? does not force itself on my mind with the same 
clear evidence as the conviction that the non-Shak- 
sperian part of Henry VIII , is by Fletcher. The choice 
of the story, in which the passion is, after all, of an arti- 
ficial kind, the toleration of the ' trash ' which abounds 
in the underplot, the faintness of the characterization, 
and, in general, the absence, except in occasional 
flashes, of the splendid genius which shows itself all 
through the last period of Shakspere, I have always 
found very perplexing. In reading the (so-called) 



24 The Two Noble Kinsmen 

Shaksperian part of the play, I do not often feel myself 
in contact with a mind of the first order. Still, it is 
certain that there is much in it that is like Shakspere, 
and some things that are worthy of him at his best; 
that the manner, in general, is more that of Shakspere 
than of any other contemporary dramatist ; and that the 
system of verse is one which we do not find in any other, 
whilst it is, in all essentials, that of Shakspere's last 
period. I cannot name any one else who could have 
written this portion of the play. ... If Shakspere 
be — as we seem forced to believe — the author of the 
part of The Two Noble Ki7isme7i now usually attributed 
to him, this will take its place in the series of his works 
between the Winter's Tale and Henry Vlliy 

Mr. J. Herbert Stack, in a paper printed in the 
Appendix of the New Shaks. Soc. ed. of Spalding's 
Letter {^, 113 foL), takes the ground that the play is 
not mainly Shakespeare's because, though founded on 
a poem which is "delicate and noble," it is itself 
" coarse and trivial ; " because Shakespeare never in- 
troduces " love between persons of very different rank " 
(in the cases of Ophelia and Hamlet, Viola and the 
Duke, Rosalind and Orlando, Helena and Bertram, 
** gentlehood unites all ") ; and because of the un- 
Shakespearian features, like " the cold, coarse balancing 
of Emilia between the two men," the final marriage of 
the Gaoler's Daughter ('' as destructive of our sympathy 
as if Ophelia had been saved from drowning by the 
grave-digger and married to Horatio at the end of the 



Introduction 25 

piece "), the " poor pedantry " of Gerrold, the '' forced 
and feeble fun of the rustics," and ^^ the sternness of 
Theseus brutal and untouched by final gentleness as in 
Chaucer." Besides, the underplot is managed with a 
clumsiness which is in marked contrast to ^^ the skill 
with which Shakespeare interweaves the two plots and 
brings together the principal and inferior personages ; " 
here the underplot is not interwoven with the main 
plot. '^ It might be altogether omitted without affecting 
the story. Theseus, Emilia, Hippolyta, Arcite, Palamon, 
never exchange a word with the group of Gaoler's 
Daughter, Wooer, Brother, Two Friends, and Doctor." 
In conclusion, Mr. Stack is inclined to the opinion 
*' that Shakespeare selected the subject, began the 
play, wrote many passages, had no underplot, and gen- 
erally left it in a skeleton state ; that Fletcher, not 
Shakespeare, is answerable for all the departures from 
Chaucer, for all the underplot, and for the revised play 
as it stands." 

Furnivall, quoting this last sentence, says (*' Leopold " 
ed. p. xcix.) : " This is as far as any one can rightly go, 
I think. My present feeling is to substitute * some ' for 
^ many ' in the passage above, and to suggest that 
Beaumont, or some one who modelled himself on the 
run-on lines of Shakspere's later time, as Fletcher did 
on the extra-syllable lines, wrote much of the work in 
this play assigned by Spalding (at first) and Hickson to 
Shakspere." He also remarks (p. xcviii.) : "While 
reading Professor Spalding's enthusiastic and able 



26 The Two Noble Kinsmen 

argument, backed by his well-chosen quotations, it is 
difficult to resist his conclusions. But when you turn 
to the play and read it by yourself or aloud with a 
party of friends, then you begin to doubt. Professor 
Spalding himself hesitated on further reflection, as we 
have seen. He was from the first obliged to admit 
that in Shakspere's specialty, characterization, the play 
was weak. He could not have denied that whereas in 
one part the character of Chaucer's Emilia, the huntress 
seeking no marriage-bed, is rightly seized, in another 
she is turned into a kind of foolish waiting-maid, not 
knowing which of her suitors she loves, and fearing 
that Palamon may be wounded and get his figure 

spoiled : — 

" * Arcite may win me, 
And yet may Palamon wound Arcite to 
The spoiling of his figure. O, what pity 
Enough for such a chance ! ' 

If the Student accepts the theory of Shakspere's taking 
anything like a half share in the play, he must yet allow 
that portions of his work and conception were afterwards 
spoiled by Fletcher. The comparisons of Chaucer's 
Kniglifs Tale, the source of the play, with the play 
itself, is in no way to Chaucer's discredit. The fear 
expressed in the Prologue that Chaucer's bones might 
shake on hearing a possible hiss at the play on its first 
production has a certain justification. That the play 
opens finely with the woes of the three queens, that 
Palamon's speech in the temple (act v.) is very fine. 



Introduction 27 

one gladly admits. But there is nothing else to match 
Chaucer's description of the foes engaged in the tourna- 
ment, of the adornments of the building where it was 
held ; nor can the sketch of Emilia in the play be set 
for a minute beside Chaucer's lovely picture of Emilia 
in the garden. The repulsiveness of the under-plot, 
whose details are due to Fletcher, detracts terribly from 
the effect of the play as a w^hole." 

Mr. Harold Littledale, whose edition of the play 
(published by the New Shakspere Society in 1876) is 
the best we have, agrees with Mr. Stack, though " hesi- 
tating to express a firm opinion on the matter." He 
suggests that possibly Shakespeare ^' w^orked on the 
1594 play as a basis." 

Mr. Swinburne, in his Sticdy of Shakespeare (London, 
1880), accepts " the masterly decision of Mr. Dyce." 
In the portions of the play ascribed to Shakespeare he 
sees the poet's hand at its best ; but he has no patience 
with " the pestilent abuse and perversion to which 
Fletcher has put the perhaps already superfluous hints 
or sketches by Shakespeare for an episodical under- 
plot, in his transmutation of Palamon's love-stricken 
and luckless deliverer into the disgusting burlesque 
of a mock Ophelia." 

Hudson, in his " Harvard " edition of Shakespeai-e 
(188 1), adopts Hickson's division. He believes that 
Shakespeare and Fletcher worked together here as in 
Henry VIII., and he sees no marked differences of style 
in the Shakespearian portions of the two plays, such as 



2 8 The Two Noble Kinsmen 

would indicate any wide interval in the times of writing, 
though The Two Noble Ki}isvie7i may be somewhat the 
earlier of the two. The non-appearance of the present 
play in the folio of 1623 '' may well have grown from an 
arrangement for dividing between the authors the fruit 
of their joint labours." 

Mr. Robert Boyle, in a paper read before the New 
Shakspere Society, December 8, 1882 (see the Transac- 
tions^ 1 880-1 882, pp. 371-399), endeavours to prove that 
the play was written by Fletcher and Massinger, Shake- 
speare having no hand in it. In summing up the main 
portion of his argument, he says : '' Fletcher's co-author 
was one whose verse closely resembled Shakspere's ; he 
constantly had some Shaksperean turn of thought in 
his mind ; he had infinitely more dramatic power than 
Fletcher, but felt himself unable to make proper use 
of it from his associate's dramatic incapacity ; he had 
a very low ideal of female nature, if it can be called an 
ideal at all ; finally, besides his classical and Shakspere 
allusions, he has a large number of passages found in 
many of Massinger's plays, of whom it has been well 
said that no author repeats himself oftener or with less 
ceremony. Now we know that Massinger has all these 
characteristics. The last point, the passages in T. N. K. 
repeated in later Massinger plays, is not to be explained 
but on the supposition that Massinger is Fletcher's assist- 
ant in T. N. K, . , , Massinger's love for Shakspere and 
imitation, not only of his style, but even of his expres- 
sions and situations, explain completely and satisfac- 



Introduction 29 

torily the Shakspere look of parts of our drama. But 
it is simply the look. The resemblance is only in the 
outer form. The power which gives the empty w^ords 
form and being is utterly wanting, and we have a 
descriptive poem instead of a drama." 

The theory is worked out by Mr. Boyle with great 
ingenuity, but while I agree fully with him that Shake- 
speare had no share in the play, though at first this 
may seem to be the case, I am not convinced that Mas- 
singer wrote the portions that have been so often and 
so confidently ascribed to Shakespeare. Many of the 
resemblances to Massinger cited in proof of the theory 
are curious, but to me they are no more conclusive than 
many of the Bacon-Shakespeare *' parallelisms " pointed 
out by the Baconian heretics. 

Halliwell-Phillipps, in his Outlines of the Life of Shake- 
speare (2d ed. 1882) states concisely *' the main ex- 
ternal testimonies on each side of the question ; " 
and among the "reasons for believing that the great 
dramatist had no share w^hatever in the composition " 
are the following : — 

" I. When John Waterson, in October, 1646, trans- 
ferred to Humphrey Moseley his copyright interests in 
three plays — The Elder Brother^ Monsieur Thomas^ 
and The Two Noble Kinsmen — the undivided author- 
ship of all of them is distinctly assigned to Fletcher 
in the register, the third appearing there under the 
title of The Noble Kinsfnan. The Fletcher ian author- 
ship of the two other dramas is undisputed ; and if 



30 The Two Noble Kinsmen 

Waterson really believed that Shakespeare had written 
part of the last, there seems no reason why the name 
of the great dramatist should not have been given in 
the entry of the assignment. ... 2. In a list of books 
printed for Moseley, which is inserted at the end of 
some copies of Shirley's Six New Playes, 1653, occurs 
' the Two Noble Kinsmen, a comedy written by Francis 
Beaumont and John Fletcher, gent, in 4°.' The same 
entry is met with the following year in a similar list of 
the works of the same publisher, these announcements 
singularly contrasting with his trading anxiety to use 
the name of Shakespeare improperly in other instances. 
It should be carefully recollected that Moseley was 
specially connected with the works of Beaumont and 
Fletcher, so that his evidence, valueless in a question 
of Shakespearian authorship, is most likely important 
in regard to the works of the former dramatists. . . . 
5. The absence of contemporary evidence that Shake- 
speare and Fletcher were acquainted with each other. 
. . . 7. The direct evidence of Leonard Digges, about 
the year 1623, of Shakespeare's aversion to any kind 
of literary partnership, so that he even carefully avoided 
the then common practice of availing himself of scenes 
written for him by other dramatists. — 8. The parallel 
instance of ' the History of Cardenio by Mr. Fletcher 
and Shakespeare ' having been entered by Moseley on 
the registers of the Stationers' Company in the year 
1653. — 9. Finally, the extreme improbability of a dram- 
atist of Shakespeare's unrivalled power and rapidity of 



Introduction 31 

composition entering, at the maturest period of his 
reputation, into the joint-authorship of a play with a 
much younger writer, and of the latter having in such 
a case the assurance to be palpably imitating him, 
both characterially and verbally, in his portion of the 
work." 

Herford does not include The Two Noble Kinsjnen in 
his " Eversley " edition of Shakspef-e, but in the intro- 
duction to his edition of the play in the " Temple 
Dramatists," he refers to Boyle ^ as having shown that 
'^in default of Shakspere, no dramatist has so good a 
claim as Massinger " to the authorship of the non- 
Fletcherian portions of the play. '' Not a single char- 
acter," he says, ^' is definitely Shaksperean : in some 
cases Shaksperean authorship is an admissible, but hardly 
a plausible, hypothesis ; in others it is blasphemy." 

Whatever may have been the history of the play, it 
may nevertheless claim a high place in the dramatic 
literature of the time. Professor Spalding well says in 
the Edinburgh Review article (July, 1847) referred to 
above : — 

'' Be the authorship whose it may, The Two Noble 
Kinsvieii is undoubtedly one of the finest dramas in 
the volumes before us [Dyce's ed. of Beaumont and 
Fletcher]. It contains passages which, in dramatic 
vigour and passion, yield hardly to anything — perhaps 
to nothing — in the whole collection ; while for gor- 

1 By a slip of the pen or of the type Boyle's paper (credited to the 
New Shaks, Soc. Transactions, 1880-1882) is said to be " by Mr. Rolfe." 



32 The Two Noble Kinsmen 

geousness of imagery, for delicacy of poetic feeling, 
and for grace, animation, and strength of language, we 
doubt whether there exists, under the names of our 
authors, any drama that comes near to it. Never has 
any theme enjoyed the honours which have befallen the 
semi-classical legend of Palamon and Arcite. Chosen 
as the foundation of chivalrous narrative by Boccaccio, 
Chaucer, and Dryden, it has furnished one of the fair- 
est of the flowers that compose the dramatic crown of 
Fletcher, while from that flower, perhaps, leaves might 
be plucked to decorate another brow which needs them 
not. 

** If the admirers of Fletcher could vindicate for him 
the fifth act of this play, they would entitle him to a still 
higher claim upon our gratitude, as the author of a series 
of scenes as picturesquely conceived, and as poetically 
set forth, as any that our literature can boast. Dramati- 
cally considered, these scenes are very faulty : perhaps 
there are but two of them that have high dramatic merits 
— the interrupted execution of Palamon, and the pre- 
ceding scene, in which Emilia, left in the forest, hears 
the tumult of the battle, and receives successive reports 
of its changes and issue. But as a gallery of poetical 
pictures, as a cluster of images suggestive alike to the 
imagination and the feelings, as a cabinet of jewels 
whose lustre dazzles the eye and blinds it to the unskil- 
ful setting, — in this light there are few pieces com- 
parable to the magnificent scene before the temples, 
where the lady and her lovers pray to the gods ; and 



Introduction 23 

the pathetically solemn close of the drama, admirable 
in itself, loses only when we compare it with the death 
of Arcite in Chaucer's masterpiece, ' the Iliad of the 
middle ages.' " 

I may add that, among the German critics, Ulrici 
{Shakespeare^ s Dramatic Art) admits that '* the diction 
has a touch of Shakespeare's style ; " but considers that 
the difference between the supposed Shakespearian por- 
tions and the rest of the play " is not sufficiently great 
to exclude the possibility that a poet of such eminent 
talent as Fletcher might, in one^ of his earlier works 
(for the play cannot, probably, be dated later than 
about 1 608-1 609), have taken some of Shakespeare's 
characters as his models, and for a time come under 
Shakespeare's influence — as the plagiarism from Ham- 
let proves ; further, that he might even have succeeded 
in imitating Shakespeare's style in single features of 
diction, nay, that he might even have succeeded in 
striking a tone kindred to Shakespeare's own in whole, 
portions of the play." This, he thinks, is more likely 
than " that Shakespeare wTote scenes and w^hole acts 
which, in substance, stand in direct contradiction to the 
spirit and character of his own composition." 

Gervinus {Shakespeare-Co??i?jte7itaries) says that Shake- 
speare may possibly have adapted the old play of 1594, 
and Fletcher, making use of Shakespeare's additions, 
may have remodelled this same old play into The Two 
Noble Ki7is77ien ; " but that Shakespeare ever could have 
taken a hearty interest in the subject is to be denied 

TWO NOBLE KINSMEN — 3 



34 The Two Noble Kinsmen 

with the greatest certainty from one single considera- 
tion ; for never have his sound ethics had to do with 
such conventional points of honour in the style of the 
dramatic Romanticists of Spain as those upon which 
the relation between Palamon and Arcite, the two 
noble cousins (the central point of the whole play), 
turns." He is therefore " of Staunton's opinion, who 
is as little inclined to impute to Shakespeare a share 
in this as in any other of the plays falsely awarded to 
him." 

H. von Friesen (in Shakespeare fa/irbitch, 1865) has 
also taken the ground that Shakespeare could not have 
been " associated in the production of a play so different 
from the works of his maturity." 



THE TWO NOBLE KINSMEN 



DRAMATIS PERSONS 

Theseus, duke of Athens. 
PiRiTHOUS, an Athenian general. 
Artesius, an Athenian captain. 

ARaTE*^' \ nephews to Creon, king of Thebes. 

Valerius, a Theban nobleman. 

Six Knights. 

A Herald. 

A Gaoler. 

Wooer to the Gaoler's Daughter. 

A Doctor. 

Brother to the Gaoler. 

Friends to the Gaoler. 

A Gentleman. 

Gerrold, a schoolmaster. 

HiPPOLYTA, bride to Theseus. 

Emilia, her sister. 

Three Queens. 

The Gaoler's Daughter. 

Waiting-woman to Emilia. 

Countrymen, Messengers, a man personating Hymen, Boy, Executioners, Guard, 
and Attendants. Country Wenches, and women personating Nymphs. 

Scene: Athens and the neighbourhood ; and in pari of the first act, Thebes 
and the neighbourhood. 







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Grecian Horsemen. From the Frieze of the Parthenon 



PROLOGUE 



New plays and maidenheads are near akin, — 
Much follow'd both, for both much money gi'en, 
If they stand sound and well ; and a good play, 
Whose modest scenes blush on his marriage-day 
And shake to lose his honour, is like her 
That, after holy tie and first night's stir, 
Yet still is modesty, and still retains 
More of the maid to sight than husband's pains. 
We pray our play may be so ; for I 'm sure 
It has a noble breeder and a pure, 
A learned, and a poet never went 
More famous yet 'twixt Po and silver Trent. 
Chaucer, of all admir'd, the story gives ; 
There constant to eternity it lives. 
If we let fall the nobleness of this. 
And the first sound this child hear be a hiss, 

37 



38 The Two Noble Kinsmen 

How will it shake the bones of that good man, 

And make him cry from mider ground, ' O, fan 

From me the witless chaff of such a writer 

That blasts my bays, and my fam'd works makes lighter 

Than Robin Hood ! ' This is the fear we bring; 21 

For, to say truth, it were an endless thing, 

And too ambitious, to aspire to him. 

Weak as we are, and almost breathless swim 

In this deep water, do but you hold out 

Your helping hands, and we shall tack about 

And something do to save us ; you shall hear 

Scenes, though below his art, may yet appear 

Worth two hours' travail. To his bones sweet sleep ! 

Content to you ! — If this play do not keep 30 

A little dull time from us, we perceive 

Our losses fall so thick we needs must leave. \_Flourtsh, 




The Three Queens 



ACT I 

Scene I. Athens, Before a Temple 

Enter Hymen, with a torch burning ; a Boy, in a white 
robe, before, sifiging and strewing flowers ; after Hy- 
men, a Nymph, enco7npassed in her tresses, bearing a 
wheaten garland ; then Theseus, between two other 
Nymphs ivith wheaten chaplets on their heads ; then 
HippoLYTA, the bride^ led by Pirithous, and afiother 
holding a garland over her head, her tresses likewise 
hangi?ig ; after her, Emilia, holding np her train; 
Artesius a7id Attendants 

39 



40 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act i 

The Song [^Music. 

Roses, their sharp spines being gone^ 
Not royal in their smells alone, 

But in their hue ; 
Maiden pinks, of odour faint, 
Daisies s??iell-less, yet most quaint, 

And sweet thyme true ; 

Primrose, first-born child of Very 
Merry spring-timers harbinger. 

With her bells dim ; 
Oxlips in their cradles growing, lo 

Marigolds on death-beds blowing, 

Larks^ -heels trim ; 

All dear Nature'' s children sweet. 
Lie fore bride and bridegroom's feet, 

Blessi?tg their sense / [Strewing flowers. 
Not an a7igel of the air. 
Bird melodious, or bird fair. 

Be absent hence / 

The crow, the slanderous cuckoo, nor 

The bodi?tg raven, nor chough hoar, 20 

Nor chatterifig pie. 
May 071 our bride- house perch or sing, 
Or with them a?iy discord bring. 

But from it fly I 



Scene I] The Two Noble Kinsmen 41 

Enter three Queens, in blacky with veils stained^ and with 
imperial crowns. The First Queen falls down at the 
foot of Theseus ; the Second /aZ/j* down at the foot of 
HipPOLYTA ; the Third before Emilia 

1 Queen, For pity's sake and true gentility's, 
Hear and respect me ! 

2 Queen. For your mother's sake, 
And as you wish yourself may thrive with fair ones. 
Hear and respect me ! 

3 Queen, Now for the love of him whom Jove hath 

mark'd 
The honour of your bed, and for the sake 30 

Of clear virginity, be advocate 
For us and our distresses ! This good deed 
Shall raze you out o' the book of trespasses 
All you are set down there. 

Theseus. Sad lady, rise. 

Hippolyta. Stand up. 

Emilia, No knees to me ! 

What woman I may stead that is distress'd 
Does bind me to her. 

Theseus, What 's your request ? Deliver you for all. 

I Queen, We are three queens, whose sovereigns fell 
before 
The wrath of cruel Creon, who endure 40 

The beaks of ravens, talons of the kites. 
And pecks of crows, in the foul fields of Thebes. 
He will not suffer us to burn their bones. 



42 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act i 

To urn their ashes, nor to take the offence 

Of mortal loathsomeness from the blest eye 

Of holy Phoebus, but infects the winds 

With stench of our slain lords. O, pity, duke ! 

Thou purger of the earth, draw thy fear'd sword. 

That does good turns to the world ; give us the bones 

Of our dead kings, that we may chapel them 1 50 

And, of thy boundless goodness, take some note 

That for our crowned heads we have no roof 

Save this, which is the lion's and the bear's 

And vault to everything 1 

Theseus, Pray you, kneel not ; 

I was transported with your speech and suffered 
Your knees to wrong themselves. I have heard the 

fortunes 
Of your dead lords, which gives me such lamenting 
As wakes my vengeance and revenge for 'em. 
King Capaneus was your lord. The day 
That he should marry you, at such a season 60 

As now it is with me, I met your groom 
By Mars's altar ; you were that time fair, 
Not Juno's mantle fairer than your tresses. 
Nor in more bounty spread her ; your wheaten wreath 
Was then nor thresh'd nor blasted ; Fortune at you 
Dimpled her cheek with smiles ; Hercules our kins- 
man — 
Then weaker than your eyes — laid by his club ; 
He tumbled down upon his Nemean hide. 
And swore his sinews thaw'd. — O grief and time. 



Scene I] The Two Noble Kinsmen 43 

Fearful consumers, you will all devour I 70 

1 Queen, O, I hope some god, 

Some god hath put his mercy in your manhood. 
Whereto he '11 infuse power and press you forth 
Our undertaker ! 

Theseus, O, no knees, none, widow 1 

Unto the helmeted Bellona use them, 
And pray for me, your soldier. — 
Troubled I am. \^Turns away, 

2 Queen, Honoured Hippolyta, 
Most dreaded Amazonian, that hast slain 

The scythe-tusk'd boar ; that, with thy arm as strong 

As it is white, w^ast near to make the male 80 

To thy sex captive, but that this thy lord — 

Born to uphold creation in that honour 

First nature styl'd it in — shrunk thee into 

The bound thou wast o'erflowing, at once subduing 

Thy force and thy affection ; soldieress, 

That equally canst poise sternness with pity ; 

Who now, I know, hast much more power on him 

Than e'er he had on thee ; who ow'st his strength 

And his love too, who is a servant for 

The tenor of thy speech ; dear glass of ladies, 90 

Bid him that we, whom flaming war doth scorch, 

Under the shadow of his sword may cool us ; 

Require him he advance it o'er our heads. 

Speak 't in a woman's key, like such a woman 

As any of us three ; weep ere you fail ; 

Lend us a knee ; 



44 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act i 

But touch the ground for us no longer time 
Than a dove's motion when the head 's pluck'd off ; 
Tell him, if he i' the blood-siz'd field lay swoln, 
Showing the sun his teeth, grinning at the moon, loo 
What you would do ! 

Hippolyta, Poor lady, say no more ; 

I had as lief trace this good action with you 
As that whereto I 'm going, and ne'er yet 
Went I so willing way. My lord is taken 
Heart-deep with your distress. Let him consider ; 
I '11 speak anon. 

3 Queen, O, my petition was \_Kneels to Emilia. 

Set down in ice, which, by hot grief uncandied, 
Melts into drops ; so sorrow, wanting form, 
Is pressed with deeper matter. 

Emilia, Pray stand up ; 

Your grief is written in your cheek. 

3 Queen. O, woe ! no 

You cannot read it there ; there, through my tears. 
Like wrinkled pebbles in a glassy stream. 
You may behold 'em ! Lady, lady, alack. 
He that will all the treasure know o' the earth 
Must know the centre too ; he that will fish 
For my least minnow, let him lead his line 
To catch one at my heart. O, pardon me ! 
Extremity, that sharpens sundry wits. 
Makes me a fool. 

Emilia. Pray you, say nothing, pray you ; 

Who cannot feel nor see the rain, being in 't, 120 



Scene I] The Two Noble Kinsmen 45 

Knows neither wet nor dry. If that you were 
The ground-piece of some painter, I would buy you, 
T' instruct me 'gainst a capital grief indeed, — 
Such heart-pierc'd demonstration ! — but, alas, 
Being a natural sister of our sex. 
Your sorrow beats so ardently upon me 
That it shall make a counter-reflect 'gainst 
My brother's heart, and warm it to some pity 
Though it were made of stone ; pray have good com- 
fort ! 129 
Theseus, Forward to the temple ! leave not out a jot 
O' the sacred ceremony. 

1 Queen, O, this celebration 
Will longer last, and be more costly, than 

Your suppliants' war ! Remember that your fame 
Knolls in the ear o' the world. What you do quickly 
Is not done rashly ; your first thought is more 
Than others' labour'd meditance, your premeditating 
More than their actions ; but — O Jove ! — your actions. 
Soon as they move, as ospreys do the fish, 138 

Subdue before they touch. Think, dear duke, think 
What beds our slain kings have ! 

2 Queen, What griefs our beds, 
That our dear lords have none ! 

3 Queen, None fit for the dead ! 
Those that, with cords, knives, drams, precipitance, 
Weary of this world's light, have to themselves 

Been death's most horrid agents, human grace 
Affords them dust and shadow — 



46 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act i 

I Queen, But our lords 

Lie blistering fore the visitating sun, 
And were good kings when living. 

Theseus, It is true ; 

And I will give you comfort, 
To give your dead lords graves, the which to do 
Must make some work with Creon. 150 

1 Queen, And that work now presents itself to the 

doing ; 
Now 't will take form ; the heats are gone to-morrow. 
Then bootless toil must recompense itself 
With it's own sweat ; now he 's secure, 
Not dreams we stand before your puissance, 
Rinsing our holy begging in our eyes. 
To make petition clear. 

2 Queen. Now you may take him. 
Drunk with his victory — 

3 Queen. And his army full 
Of bread and sloth. 

Theseus, Artesius, that best know'st 

How to draw out, fit to this enterprise, 160 

The prim'st for this proceeding and the number 
To carry such a business, forth and levy 
Our worthiest instruments, whilst we dispatch 
This grand act of our life, this daring deed 
Of fate in wedlock ! 

I Queen. Dowagers, take hands ! 

Let us be widows to our woes ! Delay 
Commends us to a famishing hope. 



Scene I] The Two Noble Kinsmen 47 

All the Queens, Farewell ! 

2 Queen. We come unseasonably ; but when could 
grief 
Cull forth, as unpang'd judgment can, fitt'st time 
For best solicitation ? 

Theseus. Why, good ladies, 170 

This is a service, whereto I am going. 
Greater than any war ; it more imports me 
Than all the actions that I have foregone 
Or futurely can cope. 

I Queefi. The more proclaiming 

Our suit shall be neglected. When her arms, 
Able to lock Jove from a synod, shall 
By warranting moonlight corslet thee, O, when 
Her twinning cherries shall their sweetness fall 
Upon thy tasteful lips, what wdlt thou think 
Of rotten kings or blubber'd queens ? what care 180 
For what thou feel'st not, w^hat thou feel'st being able 
To make Mars spurn his drum ? O, if thou couch 
But one night with her, every hour in 't will 
Take hostage of thee for a hundred, and 
Thou shalt remember nothing more than what 
That banquet bids thee to ! 

Hippolyta. {Kneeli7ig to Thesetis) Though much unlike 
You should be so transported, as much sorry 
I should be such a suitor, yet I think, 
Did I not, by the abstaining of my joy. 
Which breeds a deeper longing, cure their surfeit 190 
That craves a present medicine, I should pluck 



48 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act i 

All ladies' scandal on me. Therefore, sir, 

As I shall here make trial of my prayers, 

Either presuming them to have some force. 

Or sentencing for aye their vigour dumb. 

Prorogue this business we are going about, and hang 

Your shield afore your heart, about that neck 

Which is my fee, and which I freely lend 

To do these poor queens service. 

All Queens. O, help now! \_To Emilia, 

Our cause cries for your knee. 

Emilia, {Kneeling to Theseus) If you grant not 200 
My sister her petition, in that force. 
With that celerity and nature, which 
She makes it in, from henceforth I '11 not dare 
To ask you any thing, nor be so hardy 
Ever to take a husband. 

Theseus, Pray stand up I 

\_IIippolyta and Emilia 7'ise. 
I am entreating of myself to do 
That which you kneel to have me. — Pirithous, 
Lead on the bride. Get you and pray the gods 
For success and return ; omit not anything 
In the pretended celebration. — Queens, 210 

Follow your soldier. — As before, hence you, \_To Artesius'. 
And at the banks of Aulis meet us with 
The forces you can raise, where we shall find 
The moiety of a number, for a business 
More bigger look'd. — {To Hippolytd) Since that our 
theme is haste. 



Scene I] The Two Noble Kinsmen 49 

I stamp this kiss upon thy currant lip ; 

Sweet, keep it as my token! — (71? Artesius) Set you 

forward, 
For I will see you gone. — \Exit Artesius, 

Farewell, my beauteous sister ! — Pirithous, 
Keep the feast full ; bate not an hour on 't ! 

Pirithous, Sir, 220 

I '11 follow you at heels ; the feast's solemnity 
Shall want till your return. 

Theseus, Cousin, I charge you 

Budge not from Athens ; we shall be returning 
Ere you can end this feast, of which, I pray you. 
Make no abatement. — Once more, farewell all ! 

\Hippolyta, Emilia, Pirithous, Hy77ten, Boy, 
Nymphs and Attendants enter the temple, 

1 Queen, Thus dost thou still make good 
The tongue o' the world — 

2 Queen. And earn'st a deity 
Equal with Mars — 

3 Queen, If not above him, for 
Thou, being but mortal, mak'st affections bend 

To godlike honours ; they themselves, some say, 230 
Groan under such a mastery. 

Theseus, As we are men. 

Thus should we do ; being sensually subdued. 
We lose our human title. Good cheer, ladies ! 
Now turn we towards your comforts. {Flourish, Exeunt, 



TWO NOBLE KINSMEN — 4 



50 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act i 

/ 

Scene II. Thebes. The Court of the Palace 

Enter Palamon and Arcite 

Arcite, Dear Palamon, dearer in love than blood, 
And our prime cousin, yet unharden'd in 
The crimes of nature, let us leave the city, 
Thebes, and the temptings in 't, before we further 
Sully our gloss of youth. 
And here to keep in abstinence we shame 
As in incontinence ; for not to swim 
I' the aid o' the current were almost to sink, 
At least to frustrate striving, and to follow 
The common stream, 't would bring us to an eddy lo 

Where we should turn or drown ; if labour through, 
Our gain but life and weakness. 

Palamon. Your advice 

Is cried up with example. What strange ruins, 
Since first we went to school, may we perceive 
Walking in Thebes ! scars and bare weeds, 
The gain o' the martialist, who did propound 
To his bold ends honour and golden ingots, 
Which, though he won, he had not ; and now flurted 
By Peace, for whom he fought ! Who then shall offer 
To Mars's so-scorn'd altar ? I do bleed 20 

When such I meet, and wish great Juno would 
Resume her ancient fit of jealousy. 
To get the soldier work, that Peace might purge 
For her repletion, and retain anew 



Scene II] The Two Noble Kinsmen 51 

Her charitable heart, now hard, and harsher 
Than strife or war could be. 

Arcite. Are you not out ? 

Meet you no ruin but the soldier in 
The cranks and turns of Thebes ? You did begin 
As if you met decays of many kinds ; 
Perceive you none that do arouse your pity 30 

But the unconsider'd soldier ? 

Falamofi, Yes ; I pity 

Decays where'er I find them, but such most 
That, sw^eating in an honourable toil. 
Are paid with ice to cool 'em. 

Arcite. 'T is not this 

I did begin to speak of ; this is virtue 
Of no respect in Thebes. I spake of Thebes, 
How dangerous, if we will keep our honours, 
It is for our residing ; w^here every evil 
Hath a good colour, where every seeming good 's ' 
A certain evil ; where not to be even jump 40 

As they are here were to be strangers, and 
Such things to be mere monsters. 

Palamo7i, It is in our power — 

Unless we fear that apes can tutor 's — to 
Be masters of our manners. What need I 
Affect another's gait, which is not catching 
Where there is faith ? or to be fond upon 
Another's way of speech, when by mine own 
I may be reasonably conceiv'd, sav'd too. 
Speaking it truly ? Why am I bound 



52 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act i 

By any generous bond to follow him 50 

Follows his tailor, haply so long until 

The follow'd make pursuit ? Or let me know 

Why mine own barber is unbless'd, with him 

My poor chin too, for 't is not scissar'd just 

To such a favourite's glass ? What canon is there 

That does command my rapier from my hip, 

To dangle 't in my hand, or to go tip-toe 

Before the street be foul ? Either I am 

The fore-horse in the team, or I am none 

That draw i'the sequent trace. These poor slight sores 

Need not a plantain ; that which rips my bosom, 61 

Almost to the heart, 's — 

Arcite, Our uncle Creon. 

Palamon, He, 

A most unbounded tyrant, whose successes 
Makes heaven unfear'd, and villany assured 
Beyond its power there 's nothing ; almost puts 
Faith in a fever and deifies alone 
Voluble chance ; who only attributes 
The faculties of other instruments 
To his own nerves and act ; commands men's service 
And what they win in 't, boot and glory ; one 70 

That fears not to do harm, good dares not. Let 
The blood of mine that 's sib to him be suck'd 
From me with leeches ! let them break and fall 
Off me with that corruption ! 

Arcite, Clear-spirited cousin, 

Let 's leave his court, that we may nothing share 



Scene II] The Two Noble Kinsmen 53 

Of his loud infamy ; for our milk 
Will relish of the pasture, and we must 
Be vile or disobedient, not his kinsmen 
In blood unless in quality. 

Palamon. ■ Nothing truer ! 

I think the echoes of his shames have deaf'd 80 

The ears of heavenly justice ; widows' cries 
Descend again into their throats and have not 
Due audience of the gods. — Valerius ! 

Enter Valerius 

Valerius, The king calls for you ; yet be leaden-footed 
Till his great rage be off him. Phoebus, when 
He broke his whipstock and exclaim'd against 
The horses of the sun, but whisper'd, to 
The loudness of his fury. 

Palamon, Small winds shake him ; 

But what 's the matter ? 

Valerius, Theseus — who, where he threats, appals 
— hath sent 90 

Deadly defiance to him, and pronounces 
Ruin to Thebes, who is at hand to seal 
The promise of his wrath. 

Arcite, Let him approach ! 

But that we fear the gods in him, he brings not 
A jot of terror to us ; yet what man 
Thirds his own worth — the case is each of ours — 
When that his action 's dregg'd with mind assur'd 
'T is bad he goes about ? 



54 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act I 

Palamon. Leave that unreason'd ; 

Our services stand now for Thebes, not Creon. 
Yet to be neutral to him were dishonour, loo 

Rebellious to oppose ; therefore we must 
With him stand to the mercy of our fate, 
Who hath bounded our last minute. 

Arcite, So we must. — 

Is 't said this war 's afoot ? or it shall be, 
On fail of some condition ? 

Valerius, 'T is in motion ; 

The intelligence of state came in the instant 
With the defier. 

Palamo7i. Let 's to the king, w^ho, were he 

A quarter carrier of that honour which 
His enemy comes in, the blood we venture 
Should be as for our health, which were not spent, no 
Rather laid out for purchase ; but, alas. 
Our hands advanced before our hearts, what will 
The fall o' the stroke do damage ? 

Arcite, Let the event, 

That never-erring arbitrator, tell us 
When we know all ourselves ; and let us follow 
The becking of our chance. [^Exeufit 

Scene IIL Before the Gates of Athens 

Enter Pirithous, Hippolyta, and Emilia 

Pirithous, No further ! 

Hippolyta, Sir, farewell ! Repeat my wishes 



Scene iiij The Two Noble Kinsmen 55 

To our great lord, of whose success I dare not 
Make any timorous question ; yet I wish him 
Excess and overflow of power, an 't might be, 
To dare ill-dealing fortune. Speed to him ; 
Store never hurts good governors. 

Firithous. Though I know 

His ocean needs not my poor drops, yet they 
Must yield their tribute there. — My precious maid, 
Those best affections that the heavens infuse 
In their best-temper'd pieces keep enthron'd 10 

In your dear heart ! 

E77iilia. Thanks, sir. Remember me 

To our all-royal brother, for whose speed 
The great Bellona I '11 solicit ; and 
Since, in our terrene state, petitions are not 
Without gifts understood, I '11 offer to her 
What I shall be advis'd she likes. Our hearts 
Are in his army, in his tent. 

Hippolyta. In 's bosom ! 

We have been soldiers, and we cannot weep 
When our friends don their helms or put to sea, 
Or tell of babes broach'd on the lance, or women 20 
That have sod their infants in — and after eat them — 
The brine they wept at killing 'em ; then if 
You stay to see of us such spinsters, we 
Should hold you here for ever. 

Pirithous, Peace be to you, 

As I pursue this war ! which shall be then 
Beyond further requiring. \_Exit. 



56 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act i 

Einilia, How his longing 

Follows his friend ! Since his depart his sports, 
Though craving seriousness and skill, pass'd slightly 
His careless execution, where nor gain 
Made him regard or loss consider ; but 30 

Playing one business in his hand, another 
Directing in his head, his mind nurse equal 
To these so differing twins. Have you observed him 
Since our great lord departed ? 

Hippolyta. With much labour, 

And I did love him for 't. They two have cabin'd 
In many as dangerous as poor a corner, 
Peril and want contending ; they have skiff 'd 
Torrents whose roaring tyranny and power 
I' the least of these was dreadful ; and they have 
Fought out together where death's self was lodg'd, 40 
Yet fate hath brought them off. Their knot of love, 
Tied, weav'd, entangled with so true, so long, 
And with a finger of so deep a cunning. 
May be outworn, never undone. I think 
Theseus cannot be umpire to himself. 
Cleaving his conscience into twain and doing 
Each side like justice, which he loves best. 

Emilia, Doubtless 

There is a best, and reason has no manners 
To say it is not you. I was acquainted 
Once with a time, when I enjoy'd a playfellow ; 50 

You were at wars when she the grave enrich 'd. 
Who made too proud the bed, took leave o'the moon — 



Scene III] The Two Noble Kinsmen 57 

Which then look'd pale at parting — when our count 
Was each eleven. 

Hippolyta, 'T was Flavina. 

Emilia. Yes. 

You talk of Pirithous' and Theseus' love. 
Theirs has more ground, is more maturely season'd, 
More buckled with strong judgment, and their needs 
The one of th' other may be said to water 
Their intertangled roots of love ; but I 
And she I sigh and spoke of were things innocent, 60 
Lov'd for we did, and, like the elements 
That know not what nor why, yet do effect 
Rare issues by their operance, our souls 
Did so to one another. What she lik'd 
Was then of me approved ; what not, condemn'd, 
No more arraignment. The flower that I would pluck 
And put between my breasts — then but beginning 
To sw^ell about the blossom — she would long 
Till she had such another, and commit it 
To the like innocent cradle, where phoenix-like 70 

They died in perfume. On my head no toy 
But was her pattern ; her affections — pretty. 
Though happily her careless wear — I follow'd 
For my most serious decking. Had mine ear 
Stolen some new air, or at adventure humm'd one 
From musical coinage, why, it was a note 
Whereon her spirits would sojourn — rather dwell on — 
And sing it in her slumbers. This rehearsal — 
Which, every innocent wots well, comes in 



58 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act i 

Like old importment's bastard — has this end, 80 

That the true love 'tween maid and maid may be 
More than in sex dividual. 

Hippolyta, You 're out of breath ; 

And this high-speeded pace is but to say 
That you shall never, like the maid Flavina, 
Love any that 's call'd man. 

EmiHa, I am sure I shall not. 

Hippolyta, Now, alack, weak sister, 
I must no more believe thee in this point — 
Though in 't I know thou dost believe thyself — 
Than I will trust a sickly appetite, 
That loathes even as it longs. But sure, my sister, 90 
If I were ripe for your persuasion, you 
Have said enough to shake me from the arm 
Of the all-noble Theseus ; for w^hose fortunes 
I will now in and kneel, with great assurance 
That w^e, more than his Pirithous, possess 
The high throne in his heart. 

Emilia, I am not 

Against your faith, yet I continue mine. [^Exeunt. 

Scene IV. A Field before Thebes 

Cor7iets. A battle struck withiii ; the?i a retreat; then 
a flourish. Then e7iter Theseus, victor ; the three 
Queens meet hi?n, and fall on their faces before him 

1 Queen. To thee no star be dark ! 

2 Queen, Both heaven and earth 



Scene IV] The Two Noble Kinsmen 59 

Friend thee for ever ! 

3 Queeti. All the good that may 

Be wish'd upon thy head, I cry amen to 't ! 

Theseus. The impartial gods, who from the mounted 
heavens 
View us their mortal herd, behold who err 
And in their time chastise. Go and find out 
The bones of your dead lords, and honour them 
With treble ceremony. Rather than a gap 
Should be in their dear rites, we would supply 't. 
But those we will depute which shall invest 10 

You in your dignities, and even each thing 
Our haste does leave imperfect. So adieu. 
And heaven's good eyes look on you ! — What are 
those ? \_Exeu?it Queens, 

Herald. Men of great quality, as may be judg'd 
By their appointment ; some of Thebes have told 's 
They are sisters' children, nephews to the king. 

Theseus. By the helm of Mars, I saw them in the war. 
Like to a pair of lions smear'd with prey. 
Make lanes in troops aghast ; I fix'd my note 
Constantly on them, for they w^ere a mark 20 

Worth a god's view. What was 't that prisoner told me 
When I inquir'd their names ? 

Herald, We learn they 're call'd 

Arcite and Palamon. 

Theseus. 'T is right ; those, those. 

They are not dead ? 

Herald. Nor in a state of life ; had they been taken 



6o The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act i 

When their last hurts were given, 't was possible 
They might have been recovered ; yet they breathe 
And have the name of men. 

Theseus, Then like men use 'em ; 

The very lees of such, millions of rates 
Exceed the wine of others. All our surgeons 30 

Convent in their behoof ; our richest balms. 
Rather than niggard, waste ; their lives concern us 
Much more than Thebes is worth. Rather than have 

'em 
Freed of this plight, and in their morning state, 
Sound and at liberty, I would 'em dead ; 
But, forty thousand fold, we had rather have 'em 
Prisoners to us than death. Bear 'em speedily 
From our kind air — to them unkind — and minister 
What man to man may do ; for our sake, more : 
Since I have known fight's fury, friends' behests, 40 
Love's provocations, zeal, a mistress' task. 
Desire of liberty, a fever, madness. 
Hath set a mark — which nature could not reach to 
Without some imposition, — sickness in will. 
Or wrestling strength in reason. For our love 
And great Apollo's mercy, all our best 
Their best skill tender ! — Lead into the city, 
Where having bound things scatter'd, we will post 
To Athens fore our army. {Flourish, Exeunt, 



Scene V] The Two Noble Kinsmen 6i 

Scene V. A7ioiher Part of the Field 

Enter the Queens with the hearses of their husbands in a 
funeral solemnity^ etc. 

Song 

Urns and odours bring away I 

Vapours^ sighs, darken the day ! 
Our dole more deadly looks than dying ; 

Balms, and gums, and heazy cheers, 

Sacred vials fiW d with tears ^ 
And clamours through the wild air flying ! 

Come, all sad and solemii shows 

That a7'e quick-eyed pleasure's foes ! 

We convent nought else but woes. 

We convent, etc. lo 

3 Queen, This funeral path brings to your house- 
hold's grave. 
Joy seize on you again ! Peace sleep with him ! 

2 Queen, And this to yours 1 

I Queen, Yours this way ! Heavens lend 

A thousand differing ways to one sure end ! 

3 Queen, This world 's a city full of straying streets, 
And death 's the market-place where each one meets. 

\Exeu7it severally. 




Emilia and Her Maid 



ACT II 

Scene I. Atheiis, A Garden, with a Castle in the 
background 

Enter Gaoler and Wooer 

Gaoler, I may depart with little while I live ; 
something I may cast to you, not much. Alas, the 
prison I keep, though it be for great ones, yet they 
seldom come ; before one salmon, you shall take a 
number of minnows. I am given out to be better 

62 



Scene I] The Two Noble Kinsmen 6^ 

lined than it can appear to me report is a true 
speaker ; I would I were really that I am delivered 
to be ! Marry, what I have — be it what it will — 
I will assure upon my daughter at the day of my 
death. lo 

Wooer, Sir, I demand no more than your own 
offer ; and I will estate your daughter in what I 
have promised. 

Gaoler. Well, we will talk more of this w^hen the 
solemnity is past. But have you a full promise of 
her? When that shall be seen, I tender my consent. 

Wooer, I have, sir. Here she comes. 

E7iter Gaoler's Daughter, with rushes 

Gaoler. Your friend and I have chanced to name 
you here, upon the old business ; but no more of 
that now. So soon as the court-hurry is over, we will 20 
have an end of it. I' the mean time, look tenderly to 
the two prisoners. I can tell you they are princes. 

Daughter. These strewings are for their chamber. 
'T is pity they are in prison, and 't were pity they 
should be out. I do think they have patience to 
make any adversity ashamed ; the prison itself is 
proud of 'em, and they have all the world in their 
chamber. 28 

Gaoler. They are famed to be a pair of absolute 
men. 

Daughter. By my troth, I think fame but stammers 
*em ; they stand a grise above the reach of report. 



64 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act ii 

Gaoler, I heard them reported in the battle to be 
the only doers. 

Daughter. Nay, most likely ; for they are noble 
sufferers. I marvel how they would have looked, 
had they been victors, that with such a constant 
nobility enforce a freedom out of bondage, mak- 
ing misery their mirth and affliction a toy to jest 
at. 40 

Gaoler, Do they so ? 

Daughter, It seems to me they have no more 
sense of their captivity than I of ruling Athens ; they 
eat well, look merrily, discourse of many things, but 
nothing of their own restraint and disasters. Yet 
sometime a divided sigh, martyred as 't were i' the 
deliverance, will break from one of them ; when the 
other presently gives it so sweet a rebuke that I 
could wish myself a sigh to be so chid, or at least a 
sigher to be comforted. 50 

Wooer, I never saw 'em. 

Gaoler, The duke himself came privately in the 
night, and so did they ; what the reason of it is, I 
know not. — \^Pala7no7i and Arcite appear at a window^ 
above"] Look, yonder they are ! that 's Arcite looks 
out. 

Daughter. No, sir, no ; that 's Palamon. Arcite is 
the lower of the twain ; you may perceive a part of 
him. 

Gaoler. Go to, leave your pointing ! They would 
not make us their object ; out of their sight ! 61 



Scene II] The Two Noble Kinsmen 65 

Daughter. It is a holiday to look on them I Lord, 
the difference of men 1 [Exeunt. 



Scene II. A Room in the Prison 
Enter Palamon and Arcite 

Palamon, How do you, noble cousin ? 

Arcite, How do you, sir ? 

Palajnon, Why, strong enough to laugh at misery 
And bear the chance of war yet. W^ are prisoners 
I fear for ever, cousin. 

Arcite, I believe it, 

And to that destiny have patiently 
Laid up my hour to come. 

Palamon. O, cousin Arcite, 

Where is Thebes now ? where is our noble country ? 
Where are our friends and kindreds ? Never more 
Must we behold those comforts ; never see 
The hardy youths strive for the games of honour, 10 
Hung with the painted favours of their ladies. 
Like tall ships under sail ; then start amongst 'em. 
And, as an east wind, leave 'em all behind us 
Like lazy clouds, whilst Palamon and Arcite, 
Even in the wagging of a wanton leg, 
Outstripp'd the people's praises, won the garlands, 
Ere they have time to wish 'em ours. O, never 
Shall we two exercise, like twins of honour. 
Our arms again, and feel our fiery horses 19 

Like proud seas under us ! Our good swords now — 

TWO NOBLE KINSMEN — ^ 



66 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act ii 

Better the red-eyed god of war ne'er wore — 
Ravish'd our sides, like age, must run to rust 
And deck the temples of those gods that hate us ; 
These hands shall never draw 'em out like lightning, 
To blast whole armies, more ! 

Arcite, No, Palamon, 

Those hopes are prisoners with us : here we are, 
And here the graces of our youths must wither. 
Like a too-timely spring ; here age must find us, 
And, which is heaf^est, Palamon, unmarried ; 
The sweet embraces of a loving wife, 30 

Loaden with kisses, arm'd with thousand Cupids, 
Shall never clasp our necks ; no issue know us, 
No figures of ourselves shall we e'er see. 
To glad our age, and like young eagles teach 'em 
Boldly to gaze against bright arms, and say, 
* Remember what your fathers were, and conquer ! ' 
The fair-eyed maids shall weep our banishments. 
And in their songs curse ever-blinded Fortune, 
Till she for shame see what a wrong she has done 
To youth and nature. This is all our world ; 40 

We shall know nothing here but one another. 
Hear nothing but the clock that tells our woes. 
The vine shall grow, but we shall never see it ; 
Summer shall come, and with her all delights. 
But dead-cold winter must inhabit here still. 

Palamon, 'T is too true, Arcite. To our Theban 
hounds, 
That shook the aged forest with their echoes. 



Scene II] The Two Noble Kinsmen 67 

No more now must we halloo ; no more shake 

Our pointed javelins whilst the angry swine 

Fhes like a Parthian quiver from our rages, 50 

Stuck with our well-steel'd darts ! All valiant uses — 

The food and nourishment of noble minds — 

In us two here shall perish ; we shall die — 

Which is the curse of honour — lazily, 

Children of grief and ignorance. 

Arcite, Yet, cousin, 

Even from the bottom of these miseries. 
From all that fortune can inflict upon us, 
I see tw^o comforts rising, two mere blessings. 
If the gods please to hold here, — a brave patience, 
And the enjoying of our griefs together. 60 

Whilst Palamon is with me, let me perish 
If I think this our prison ! 

Palamon, Certainly, 

'T is a main goodness, cousin, that our fortunes 
Were twin'd together. 'T is most true, two souls 
Put in two noble bodies, let 'em suffer 
The gall of hazard, so they grow^ together. 
Will never sink ; they must not ; say they could, 
A willing man dies sleeping, and all 's done. 

Arcite. Shall we make worthy uses of this place 
That all men hate so much ? 

Pala??ion, How, gentle cousin ? 70 

Arcite, Let 's think this prison holy sanctuary 
To keep us from corruption of worse men. 
We are young, and yet desire the ways of honour, 



68 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act ii 

That liberty and common conversation, 
The poison of pure spirits, might, like women, 
Woo us to wander from. What w^orthy blessing 
Can be but our imaginations 
May make it ours ? and here being thus together, 
We are an endless mine to one another ; 
We are one another's wife, ever begetting 80 

New births of love ; we are father, friends, acquaint- 
ance ; 
We are, in one another, families ; 
I am your heir, and you are mine ; this place 
Is our inheritance; no hard oppressor 
Dare take this from us ; here, with a little patience, 
We shall live long, and loving ; no surfeits seek us ; 
The hand of w^ar hurts none here, nor the seas 
Swallow their youth. Were we at liberty, 
A wife might part us lawfully, or business, 
Quarrels consume us, envy of ill men 90 

Grave our acquaintance. I might sicken, cousin, 
Where you should never know it, and so perish 
Without your noble hand to close mine eyes, 
Or prayers to the gods ; a thousand chances. 
Were we from hence, would sever us. 

Palamon, You have made me — 

I thank you, cousin Arcite — almost wanton 
With my captivity ; what a misery 
It is to live abroad, and everywhere ! 
'T is like a beast, methinks ! I find the court here, 
I am sure, a more content ; and all those pleasures, 



Scene II] The Two Noble Kinsmen 69 

That woo the wills of men to vanity, loi 

I see through now, and am sufficient 

To tell the world 't is but a gaudy shadow, 

That old Time, as he passes by, takes with him. 

What had we been, old in the court of Creon, 

Where sin is justice, lust and ignorance 

The virtues of the great ones ! Cousin Arcite, 

Had not the loving gods found this place for us. 

We had died as they do, ill old men, unwept, 

And had their epitaphs, the people's curses. no 

Shall I say more ? 

Arcite. I would hear you still. 

Palamon, Ye shall. 

Is there record of any two that lov'd 
Better than we do, Arcite ? 

Arcite, Sure, there cannot. 

Palamon, I do not think it possible our friendship 
Should ever leave us. 

Arcite, Till our deaths it cannot ; 

And after death our spirits shall be led 
To those that love eternally. Speak on, sir. 

Enter Emilia and Waiting-woman, below 

Emilia. This garden has a world of pleasures in *t. 
What flower is this ? 

Waiting'W077ian. 'T is call'd narcissus, madam. 

Emilia. That was a fair boy certain, but a fool 120 
To love himself ; were there not maids enough ? 

Arcite. Pray, forward. 



70 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act ii 

Palamon, Yes. 

E77iilia, Or were they all hard-hearted ? 

Waiting-wo7nan, They could not be to one so fair. 

E77iilia. Thou wouldst not ? 

Waiti7ig-wo77ia7i. I think I should not, madam. 

E77iilia, That 's a good wench ; 

But take heed to your kindness though ! 

Waiti7ig-wo77ian. ^^'hy, madam ? 

E77iilia. Men are mad things. 

Arcite, Will ye go forward, cousin ? 

ETTiilia. Canst thou not w^ork such flowers in silk, 
wench ? 

Waiti7ig-wo77ian, Yes. 

Emilia, I '11 have a gown full of 'em ; and of these. 
This is a pretty colour ; \vill 't not do 
Rarely upon a skirt, wench ? 

Waiting-'W077ia7i, Dainty, madam. 130 

Arcite, Cousin ! Cousin ! How do you, sir t Why, 
Palamon ! 

Pala77io7i, Never till now I was in prison, Arcite. 

Arcite, Why, what 's the matter, man ? 

Pala77ion, Behold, and wonder ! 

By heaven, she is a goddess ! 

Arcite, Ha I 

Palamon. Do reverence ! 

She is a goddess, Arcite ! 

E77iilia, Of all flowers 

Methinks a rose is best. 

Waiting-woman, Why, gentle madam ? 



Scene II] The Two Noble Kinsmen 71 

Emilia. It is the very emblem of a maid ; 
For when the west wind courts her gently, 
How modestly she blows and paints the sun 
With her chaste blushes ! when the north comes near 
her, 140 

Rude and impatient, then, like chastity, 
She locks her beauties in her bud again 
And leaves him to base brierSo 

A7'cite, She is wondrous fair ! 

Palamon, She is all the beauty extant ! 

Emilia, The sun grows high ; let 's w^alk in. Keep 
these flowers ; 
We '11 see how near art can come near their colours, 

\_Exit with Waiting'WO??ian. 

Palamon. What think you of this beauty ? 

Arcite. 'T is a rare one, 

Palamon, Is 't but a rare one ? 

Arcite, Yes, a matchless beauty. 

Palamon, Might not a man well lose himself and 
love her? 149 

Arcite, I cannot tell what you have done ; I have, 
Beshrew mine eyes for 't ! Now I feel my shackles. 

Palamon, You love her then ? 

Arcite, Who would not ? 

Palamon, And desire her ? 

Arcite, Before my liberty. 

Palamon, I saw her first. 

Arcite, That 's nothing. 

Palamon, But it shall be. 



72 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act ii 

Arcife. I saw her too. 

Palanioii, Yes ; but you must not love her. 

Arcite. I will not, as you do, to worship her, 
As she is heavenly and a blessed goddess. 
I love her as a woman, to enjoy her ; 
So both may love. 

Palamon. You shall not love at all. 

Arcite. Not love at all ? who shall deny me ? i6o 

Palamon. I that first saw her, I that took possession 
First with mine eye of all those beauties in her 
Reveal'd to mankind ! If thou lovest her. 
Or entertain'st a hope to blast my wishes. 
Thou art a traitor, Arcite, and a fellow 
False as thy title to her ; friendship, blood. 
And all the ties between us I disclaim 
If thou once think upon her ! 

Arcite. Yes, I love her, 

And if the lives of all my name lay on it 
I must do so ; I love her with my soul. 170 

If that will lose ye, farewell, Palamon ! 
I say again, I love ; and, in loving her, maintain 
I am as worthy and as free a lover. 
And have as just a title to her beauty, 
As any Palamon, or any living 
That is a man's son. 

Palamo7i. Have I call'd thee friend ? 

Arcite. Yes, and have found me so. Why are you 
mov'd thus ? 
Let me deal coldly with you : am not I 



Scene II] The Two Noble Kinsmen 73 

Part of your blood, part of your soul ? you have told me 
That I was Palamon, and you were Arcite. 180 

Palainon, Yes. 

Arcite, Am not I liable to those affections, 
Those joys, griefs, angers, fears, my friend shall suffer ? 

Palamofi, Ye may be. 

Arcite. Why then would you deal so cunningly, 

So strangely, so unlike a noble kinsman. 
To love alone ? Speak truly ; do you think me 
Unworthy of her sight ? 

Pala7non. No ; but unjust 

If thou pursue that sight. 

Arcite, Because another 

First sees the enemy, shall I stand still. 
And let mine honour down, and never charge ? 190 

Palamo7i. Yes, if he be but one. 

Arcite. But say that one 

Had rather combat me ? 

Pala77ion, Let that one say so, 

And use thy freedom ; else, if thou pursuest her, 
Be as that cursed man that hates his country, 
A branded villain ! 

Arcite, You are mad. 

Pala77io?i, I must be 

Till thou art worthy, Arcite ; it concerns me ; 
And, in this madness, if I hazard thee 
And take thy life, I deal but truly. 

Arcite, Fie, sir ! 

You play the child extremely ; I will love her, 



74 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act ii 

I must, I ought to do so, and I dare, 200 

And all this justly. 

Palamon, O, that now, that now, 

Thy false self and thy friend had but this fortune. 
To be one hour at liberty, and grasp 
Our good swords in our hands ! I 'd quickly teach thee 
What 't were to filch affection from another ! 
Thou art baser in it than a cutpurse ! 
Put but thy head out of this window more. 
And, as I have a soul, I '11 nail thy life to 't ! 

Arcite. Thou dar'st not, fool ; thou canst not, thou 
art feeble. 
Put my head out ! I '11 throw my body out, 210 

And leap the garden, when I see her next, 
And pitch between her arms, to anger thee. 

Falamo?t. No more ! the keeper 's coming ; I shall 
live 
To knock thy brains out with my shackles. 

Arcite, Do 1 

Enter Gaoler 

Gaoler. By your leave, gentlemen. 

Fala7?ion, Now, honest keeper ? 

Gaoler. Lord Arcite, you must presently to the duke ; 
The cause I know not yet. 

Arcite, I am ready, keeper. 

Gaoler. Prince Palamon, I must awhile bereave you 
Of your fair cousin's company. \^Exit with Arcite. 

Palamon. And me too, 



Scene II] The Two Noble Kinsmen 75 

Even when you please, of life. — Why is he sent for? 

It may be, he shall marry her ; he 's goodly, 221 

And like enough the duke hath taken notice 

Both of his blood and body. But his falsehood ! 

Why should a friend be treacherous ? If that 

Get him a wife so noble and so fair, 

Let honest men ne'er love again ! Once more 

I would but see this fair one. — Blessed garden, 

And fruit and flowers more blessed, that still blossom 

As her bright eyes shine on ye ! Would I were, 

For all the fortune of my life hereafter, 230 

Yon little tree, yon blooming apricock ! 

How I would spread, and fling my wanton arms 

In at her window ! I would bring her fruit 

Fit for the gods to feed on ; youth and pleasure, 

Still as she tasted, should be doubled on her ; 

And, if she be not heavenly, I would make her 

So near the gods in nature they should fear her ; 

And then I am sure she would love me. — 

Re-enter Gaoler 

How now, keeper ? 
Where 's Arcite ? 

Gaoler, Banish'd. Prince Pirithous 

Obtain'd his liberty ; but never more, 240 

Upon his oath and life, must he set foot 
Upon this kingdom. 

Falamon. He 's a blessed man ! 

He shall see Thebes again, and call to arms 



76 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act ii 

The bold young men that, when he bids 'em charge, 

Fall on like fire. Arcite shall have a fortune, 

If he dare make himself a worthy lover. 

Yet in the field to strike a battle for her ; 

And if he lose her then, he 's a cold coward. 

How bravely may he bear himself to win her, 

If he be noble Arcite, thousand ways ! 250 

Were I at liberty, I would do things 

Of such a virtuous greatness that this lady, 

This blushing virgin, should take manhood to her 

And seek to ravish me ! 

Gaoler. My lord, for you 

I have this charge too — 

Palamon. To discharge my life ? 

Gaoler, No, but from this place to remove your 
lordship ; 
The windows are too open. 

Palamon. Devils take 'em 

That are so envious to me 1 Prithee, kill me ! 

Gaoler. And hang for 't afterward ? 

Fala?non. By this good light. 

Had I a sword, I 'd kill thee ! 

Gaoler. Why, my lord ? 260 

Falamo7i. Thou bring'st such pelting scurvy news 
continually. 
Thou art not worthy life ! I will not go. 

Gaoler, Indeed you must, my lord. 

Palamon. May I see the garden ? 

Gaoler. No. 



Scene III] The Two Noble Kinsmen 77 

Fala?non, Then I am resolv'd I will not go. 

Gaoler, I must 

Constrain you then ; and, for you are dangerous, 
I '11 clap more irons on you. 

Palamo7i, Do, good keeper 1 

I '11 shake 'em so, ye shall not sleep ; 
I '11 make ye a new morris ! Must I go ? 

Gaoler. There is no remedy. 

Pala?7i07i, Farewell, kind window ! 

May rude wind never hurt thee ! — O my lady, 271 

If ever thou hast felt what sorrow was. 
Dream how I suffer ! — Come, now bury me. \_Exeunt 

Scene III. The Country near Athens 

Enter Arcite 

Arcite. Banish 'd the kingdom ? 'T is a benefit, 
A mercy I must thank 'em for ; but banish'd 
The free enjoying of that face I die for, 
O, 't was a studied punishment, a death 
Beyond imagination ! such a vengeance 
That, were I old and wicked, all my sins 
Could never pluck upon me. — Palamon, 
Thou hast the start now ; thou shalt stay and see 
Her bright eyes break each morning 'gainst thy 

window 
And let in life into thee ; thou shalt feed 10 

Upon the sweetness of a noble beauty 
That nature ne'er exceeded nor ne'er shall. 



7 8 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act ii 

Good gods, what happiness has Palamon ! 

Twenty to one, he '11 come to speak to her, 

And, if she be as gentle as she 's fair, 

I know she 's his ; he has a tongue will tame 

Tempests and make the wild rocks wanton. Come 

what can come. 
The worst is death ; I will not leave the kingdom. 
I know mine own is but a heap of ruins, 
And no redress there ; if I go, he has her. 20 

I am resolv'd ; another shape shall make me, 
Or end my fortunes ; either way, I 'm happy. 
I '11 see her and be near her, or no more. 

Enter foicr Countrymen ; one with a garland before 

them 

1 Cou7itry7?ian, My masters, I '11 be there, that 's 

certain. 

2 Countryman. And I '11 be there. 

3 Countryma?i, And I. 

4 Cou?itry77ia?i, Why then, have with ye, boys, 't is 

but a chiding ; 
Let the plough play to-day 1 I '11 tickle 't out 
Of the jades' tails to-morrow ! 

I Cou7itry7nan, I am sure 

To have my wife as jealous as a turkey. 
But that 's all one ; I '11 go through, let her mumble. 30 

3 Country7nan, Do we all hold against the Maying? 

4 Country 77ia7i. Hold ! what should ail us ? 

3 Countryman. Areas will be there. 



Scene III] The Two Noble Kinsmen 79 

2 Countryjtian. And Sennois, 

And Rycas ; and three better lads ne'er danc'd 
Under green tree ; and ye know what wenches, ha ! 
But will the dainty domine, the schoolmaster, 
Keep touch, do you think ? for he does all, ye know\ 

3 Country 77ian. He '11 eat a horn-book ere he fail ; 

go to ! 
The matter 's too far driven between 
Him and the tanner's daughter to let slip now; 40 

And she must see the duke, and she must dance too. 

4 Countryma7i, Shall we be lusty ? 

2 CotintryDian. Here I '11 be. 

And there I '11 be, for our town ; and here again, 
And there again ! Ha, boys, heigh for the weavers ! 

1 Coic7itryinaiu This must be done i'the woods. 

4 C 01171 t7y 771 a7i. O, pardon me ! 

2 Cou7it7j77ian. By any means ; our thing of learn- 

ing says so ; 
Where he himself will edify the duke 
Most parlously in our behalfs. He 's excellent i' the 

woods ; 
Bring him to th' plains, his learning makes no cry. 

3 Cou7itry77ia7i, We '11 see the sports ; then every 

man to 's tackle ! 50 

And, sweet companions, let 's rehearse by any means. 
Before the ladies see us, and do sweetly, 
And God knows what may come on 't. 

4 Cou7it7y77ia7i, Content ; the sports 
Once ended, we '11 perform. Away, boys, and hold I 



8o The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act II 

Arcite, By your leaves, honest friends ; pray you, 

whither go you ? 
4 Countryman, Whither ? why, what a question 's 

that! 
Arcite, Yes, 't is a question 

To me that know not. 

3 Countryman, To the games, my friend. 

2 Countryman, Where were you bred, you know it 

not? 
Arcite, Not far, sir. 

Are there such games to-day ? 

1 Coimtryman, Yes, marry, are there. 
And such as you ne'er saw ; the duke himself 6o 
Will be in person there. 

Arcite. What pastimes are they ? 

2 Country7nan, Wrestling and running. — 'T is a 

pretty fellow. 

3 Countryma7i, Thou wilt not go along ? 
Arcite. Not yet, sir. 

4 Count7y7nan. Well, sir. 
Take your own time. — Come, boys ! 

1 Country7nan. My mind misgives me 
This fellow has a vengeance trick o' the hip ; 

Mark, how his body 's made for 't ! 

2 Cou7itry7nan. I '11 be hang'd though 
If he dare venture ; hang him, plum-porridge ! 

He wrestle ? He roast eggs! Come, let 's be gone, lads. 

\^Exeunt Countrymen. 
Arcite. This is an offer 'd opportunity 



Scene IV] The Two Noble Kinsmen 8i 

I durst not wish for. Well I could have wrestled — 70 

The best men call'd it excellent — and run 

Swifter than wind upon a field of corn, 

Curling the wealthy ears, e'er flew. I '11 venture, 

And in some poor disguise be there ; who knows 

Whether my brows may not be girt with garlands, 

And happiness prefer me to a place 

Where I may ever dwell in sight of her ? \_Exit 

Scene IV. Athens. A Room in the Prison 

Enter Gaoler's Daughter 

Daughter, Why should I love this gentleman ? 'T is 
odds 
He never will affect me. I am base. 
My father the mean keeper of his prison, 
And he a prince ; to marr}^ him is hopeless, 
To be his whore is witless. Out upon 't ! 
What pushes are we wenches driven to. 
When fifteen once has found us ! First, I saw him ; 
I, seeing, thought he was a goodly man ; 
He has as much to please a woman in him — 
If he please to bestow it so — as ever 10 

These eyes yet look'd on. Next, I pitied him ; 
And so would any young wench, o' my conscience. 
That ever dream'd, or vow'd her maidenhead 
To a young handsome man. Then, I lov'd him ! 
Extremely lov'd him, infinitely lov'd him ! 
And yet he had a cousin, fair as he too : 

TWO NOBLE KINSMEN — 6 



82 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act ii 

But in my heart was Palamon, and there, 

Lord, what a coil he keeps ! To hear him 

Sing in an evening, what a heaven it is ! 

And yet his songs are sad ones. Fairer spoken 20 

Was never gentleman ; when I come in 

To bring him water in a morning, first 

He bows his noble body, then salutes me thus : 

' Fair gentle maid, good morrow 1 may thy goodness 

Get thee a happy husband ! ' Once he kiss'd me ; 

I lov'd my lips the better ten days after. 

Would he would do so every day ! He grieves much. 

And me as much to see his misery. 

What should I do, to make him know I love him ? 

For I would fain enjoy him ; say I ventur'd 30 

To set him free ? what says the law then ? 

Thus much for law, or kindred ! I will do it, 

And this night or to-morrow he shall love me. [Exi^, 

Scene V. An Open Place in A thesis. A short floimsh 
of cornets y and shouts within 

Enter Theseus, Hippolyta, Pirithous, Emilia ; Ar- 
ciTE, disguised^ wearing a garland ; ^«^/ Countrymen 

Theseus, You have done worthily ; I have not seen. 
Since Hercules, a man of tougher sinews. 
Whatever you are, you run the best and wrestle 
That these times can allow. 

Arcite. I am proud to please you. 

Theseus, What country bred you ? 



Scene V] The Two Noble Kinsmen 83 

Arcite, This ; but far off, prince. 

Theseus, Are you a gentleman ? 

Arcite, My father said so, 

And to those gentle uses gave me life. 

Theseus, Are you his heir ? 

Arcite, His youngest, sir. 

Theseus, Your father, 

Sure, is a happy sire then. What proves you ? 

Arcite. A Httle of all noble qualities : 10 

I could have kept a hawk, and well have halloo'd 
To a deep cry of dogs ; I dare not praise 
My feat in horsemanship, yet they that knew me 
Would say it was my best piece ; last, and greatest, 
I would be thought a soldier. 

Theseus. You are perfect. 

Pirithous, Upon my soul, a proper man ! 

E77iilia, He is so. 

Pirithous. How do you like him, lady ? 

Hippolyta. I admire him ; 

I have not seen so young a man so noble, 
If he say true, of his sort. 

Emilia. Believe 

His mother was a wondrous handsome woman ; 20 

His face methinks goes that way. 

Hippolyta. But his body 

And fiery mind illustrate a brave father. 

Pirithous. Mark how his virtue, like a hidden sun, 
Breaks through his baser garments I 

Hippolyta, He 's well got, sure. 



84 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act 11 

Theseus, What made you seek this place, sir ? 

Arcite. Noble Theseus, 

To purchase name, and do my ablest service 
To such a well-found wonder as thy worth ; 
For only in thy court, of all the world, 
Dwells fair-eyed Honour. 

Pirithous. All his words are worthy. 

Theseus. Sir, we are much indebted to your travail, 
Nor shall you lose your wish. — Pirithous, 31 

Dispose of this fair gentleman. 

Pirithous, Thanks, Theseus. — 

Whate'er you are, you 're mine, and I shall give you 
To a most noble service, — to this lady. 
This bright young virgin ; pray observe her goodness. 
You 've honour'd her fair birthday with your virtues, 
And, as your due, you 're hers ; kiss her fair hand, sir. 

Arcite. Sir, you 're a noble giver. — Dearest beauty. 
Thus let me seal my vow'd faith ! when your servant — 
Your most unworthy creature — but offends you, 40 

Command him die, he shall. 

Emilia. That were too cruel. 

If you deserve well, sir, I shall soon see 't. 
You 're mine ; and somewhat better than your rank 
I '11 use you. 

Pirithous. I '11 see you furnish 'd ; and because you 
say 
You are a horseman, I must needs entreat you 
This afternoon to ride, but 't is a rough one. 

Arcite. I like him better, prince ; I shall not then 



Scene VI] The Two Noble Kinsmen 85 

Freeze in my saddle. 

Theseus. Sweet, you must be ready — 

And you, Emilia — and you, friend — and all — 50 

To-morrow, by the sun, to do observance 
To flowery May, in Dian's wood. — Wait well, sir, 
Upon your mistress ! — Emily, I hope 
He shall not go afoot. 

Emilia, That were a shame, sir. 

While I have horses. — Take your choice ; and what 
You want at any time, let me but know it. 
If you serve faithfully, I dare assure you 
You '11 find a loving mistress. 

Arcite. If I do not, 

Let me find that my father ever hated, — 
Disgrace and blows ! 

Thesetcs. Go, lead the way ; you Ve won it. 

It shall be so ; you shall receive all dues 61 

Fit for the honour you have won ; 't were wrong else. — 
Sister, beshrew my heart, you have a servant 
That, if I were a woman, would be master ; 
But you are wise. 

Emi/ia, I hope too wise for that, sir. 

\Floiu'ish, Exeunt. 

Scene VI. Before the Prisoii 

Enter Gaoler's Daughter 

Daughter. Let all the dukes and all the devils roar, 
He is at liberty ! I 've ventur'd for him ; 



86 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act il 

And out I have brought him to a Httle wood 

A mile hence. I have sent him where a cedar, 

Higher than all the rest, spreads like a plane 

Fast by a brook ; and there he shall keep close 

Till I provide him files and food, for yet 

His iron bracelets are not off. — O Love, 

What a stout-hearted child thou art ! My father 

Durst better have endur'd cold iron than done it. — 

I love him beyond love and beyond reason, u 

Or wit, or safety. I have made him know it ; 

I care not, I am desperate. If the law 

Find me and then condemn me for 't, some wenches, 

Some honest-hearted maids, will sing my dirge 

And tell to memory my death was noble, 

Dying almost a martyr. That way he takes, 

I purpose, is my way too ; sure he cannot 

Be so unmanly as to leave me here ! 

If he do, maids will not so easily 20 

Trust men again ; and yet he has not thank'd me 

For what I have done, no, not so much as kiss'd me, 

And that, methinks, is not so well ; nor scarcely 

Could I persuade him to become a freeman, 

He made such scruples of the wTong he did 

To me and to my father. Yet, I hope. 

When he considers more, this love of mine 

Will take more root within him ; let him do 

What he will with me, so he use me kindly ! 

For use me so he shall, or I '11 proclaim him, 30 

And to his face, no man. I '11 presently 



Scene VI] The Two Noble Kinsmen 87 

Provide him necessaries, and pack my clothes up, 

And where there is a patch of ground I '11 venture, 

So he be v^ith me ; by him, like a shadow, 

I '11 ever dwell. Within this hour the whoo-bub 

Will be all o'er the prison ; I am then 

Kissing the man they look for. — Farewell, father ! 

Get many more such prisoners and such daughters. 

And shortly you may keep yourself. Now to him ! 

\Exit 








'^^> :^ 



"^ 



.. 'MO 



In the Forest 



ACT III 

Scene I. A Fo7'est. Coi-nets in sinidry places. Noise 
and hallooing, as of People a-Maying 

Enter Arcite 

Arcite. The duke has lost Hippolyta ; each took 
A several laund. This is a solemn rite 
They owe bloom'd May, and the Athenians pay it 
To the heart of ceremony. — O queen Emilia, 
Fresher than May, sweeter 
Than her gold buttons on the boughs, or all 



Scene I] The Two Noble Kinsmen 89 

Th' enamell'd knacks o' the mead or garden ! yea, 

We challenge too the bank of any nymph 

That makes the stream seem flowers ; thou, O jewel 

O' the wood, o' the world, hast likewise bless'd a place 

With thy sole presence ! In thy rumination n 

That I, poor man, might eftsoons come between 

And chop on some cold thought ! — Thrice blessed 

chance, 
To drop on such a mistress, expectation 
Most guiltless on 't ! Tell me, O lady Fortune — 
Next after Emily my sovereign — how far 
I may be proud. She takes strong note of me. 
Hath made me near her, and this beauteous morn, 
The prim'st of all the year, presents me with 
A brace of horses ; two such steeds might w^ell 20 

Be by a pair of kings back'd, in a field 
That their crowns' titles tried. — Alas, alas. 
Poor cousin Palamon, poor prisoner ! thou 
So little dream 'st upon my fortune that 
Thou think'st thyself the happier thing, to be 
So near Emilia ! Me thou deem'st at Thebes, 
And therein wretched, although free ; but if 
Thou knew'st my mistress breath'd on me, and that 
I ear'd her language, liv'd in her eye, O coz, 
What passion would enclose thee ! 

Enter Palamon out of a bush, with his shackles ; he 
bejids his fist at Arcite 

Pala7?ion, Traitor kinsman ! 



90 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act m 

Thou shouldst perceive my passion, if these signs 31 

Of prisonment were off me and this hand 

But owner of a sword ! By all oaths in one, 

I, and the justice of my love, would make thee 

A confessed traitor ! O thou most perfidious 

That ever gently look'd ! the void'st of honour 

That e'er bore gentle token ! falsest cousin 

That ever blood made kin ! call'st thou her thine ? 

I '11 prove it in my shackles, with these hands 

Void of appointment, that thou liest, and art 40 

A very thief in love, a chaffy lord, 

Nor worth the name of villain ! Had I a sword. 

And these house-clogs away — 

Arcite, Dear cousin Palamon — 

Palamon. Cozener Arcite, give me language such 
As thou hast show'd me feat ! 

Arcite, Not finding in 

The circuit of my breast any gross stuff 
To form me like your blazon, holds me to 
This gentleness of answer ; 't is your passion 
That thus mistakes, the which, to you being enemy, 
Cannot to me be kind. Honour and honesty 50 

I cherish and depend on, howsoe'er 
You skip them in me, and with them, fair coz, 
I '11 maintain my proceedings. Pray be pleas'd 
To show in generous terms your griefs, since that 
Your question 's with your equal, who professes 
To clear his own way with the mind and sword 
Of a true gentleman. 



Scene I] The Two Noble Kinsmen 91 

Palamon, That thou durst, Arcite ! 

Arcite. My coz, my coz, you have been well advertis'd 
How much I dare ; you 've seen me use my sword 
Against the advice of fear. Sure, of another 60 

You would not hear me doubted but your silence 
Should break out, though i' the sanctuary. 

Pala77io7i, Sir, 

I 've seen you move in such a place which well 
Might justify your manhood ; you were call'd 
A good knight and a bold ; but the whole week 's not 

fair 
If any day it rain. Their valiant temper 
Men lose when they incline to treachery ; 
And then they fight like compell'd bears, would fly 
Were they not tied. 

Arcite. Kinsman, you might as w^ell 

Speak this, and act it in your glass, as to 70 

His ear which now disdains you. 

Pala77ion. Come up to me ! 

Quit me of these cold g}^ves, give me a sword, 
Though it be rusty, and the charit}^ 
Of one meal lend me ; come before me then, 
A good sword in thy hand, and do but say 
That Emily is thine, I will forgive 
The trespass thou hast done me, yea, my life, 
If then thou carry 't ; and brave souls in shades. 
That have died manly, which wall seek of me 
Some news from earth, they shall get none but this, 80 
That thou art brave and noble. 



92 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act ill 

Arcite. Be content ; 

Again betake you to your hawthorn-house. 
With counsel of the night, I will be here 
With wholesome viands ; these impediments 
Will I file off ; you shall have garments, and 
Perfumes to kill the smell o' the prison ; after, 
When you shall stretch yourself, and say but, * Arcite, 
I am in plight ! ' there shall be at your choice 
Both sword and armour. 

Pala77ion. O you heavens, dares any 

So noble bear a guilty business ? None 90 

But only Arcite ; therefore none but Arcite 
In this kind is so bold. 

Arcite, Sweet Palamon — 

Pala7no7i, I do embrace you, and your offer. For 
Your offer do 't I only, sir ; your person. 
Without hypocrisy, I may not \vish 
More than my sword's edge on 't. 

\^Hor7is wi7ided within, 

Arcite, You hear the horns ; 

Enter your musit, lest this match between 's 
Be cross'd ere met. Give me your hand ; farewell ! 
I '11 bring you every needful thing ; I pray you 
Take comfort and be strong. 

Pala77ion. Pray hold your promise, 

And do the deed with a bent brow. Most certain loi 
You love me not ; be rough with me and pour 
This oil out of your language. By this air, 
I could for each word give a cuff, my stomach 



Scene I] The Two Noble Kinsmen 93 

Not reconcil'd by reason ! 

Arcite. Plainly spoken ! 

Yet pardon me hard language : when I spur 
My horse, I chide him not; content and anger 

\_Ho7'ns wijided again. 
In me have but one face. — Hark, sir ! they call 
The scatter'd to the banquet ; you must guess 
I have an office there. 

Palamo7i. Sir, your attendance no 

Cannot please heaven ; and I know your office 
Unjustly is achieved. 

Arcite, I 've a good title, 

I am persuaded ; this question, sick between 's, 
By bleeding must be cur'd. I am a suitor 
That to your sword you will bequeath this plea 
And talk of it no more. 

Palamon, But this one word : 

You are going now to gaze upon my mistress ; 
For, note you, mine she is — 

Arcite, Nay, then — 

Palamon, Nay, pray you ! — 

You talk of feeding me to breed me strength : 
You are going now to look upon a sun 120 

That strengthens what it looks on ; there you have 
A vantage o'er me, but enjoy it till 
I may enforce my remedy. Farewell ! \Exeunt, 



94 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act in 

Scene II. Another Part of the Forest 

Enter Gaoler's Daughter 

Daughter. He has mistook the brake I meant, is 
gone 
After his fancy. 'T is now well-nigh morning ; 
No matter ! would it were perpetual night, 
And darkness lord o' the world ! — Hark ! 't is a wolf ; 
In me hath grief slain fear, and, but for one thing, 
I care for nothing, and that 's Palamon. 
I reck not if the wolves would jaw me, so 
He had this file. What if I halloo'd for him ? 
I cannot halloo ; if I whoop'd, what then ? 
If he not answer'd, I should call a wolf, lo 

And do him but that service. I have heard 
Strange howls this livelong night ; why may 't not be 
They have made prey of him ? He has no weapons. 
He cannot run ; the jingling of his gyves 
Might call fell things to listen who have in them 
A sense to know a man unarm'd and can 
Smell where resistance is. I '11 set it down 
He 's torn to pieces ; they howPd many together, 
And then they fed on him — so much for that ! 
Be bold to ring the bell ; how stand I then ? 20 

All 's char'd when he is gone. No, no, I lie, 
My father 's to be hang'd for his escape ; 
Myself to beg, if I priz'd life so much 
As to deny my act, but that I would not, 



Scene III] The Two Noble Kinsmen 95 

Should I try death by dozens ! — I am mop'd ; 

Food I took none these two days — 

Sipp'd some water. I have not closed mine eyes, 

Save when my lids scour'd off their brine. — Alas, 

Dissolve, my life 1 let not my sense unsettle, 

Lest I should drown, or stab, or hang myself ! 30 

O state of nature, fail together in me, 

Since thy best props are warp'd I — So ! which way 

now ? 
The best way is the next way to a grave ; 
Each errant step beside is torment. Lo, 
The moon is down, the crickets chirp, the screech-owl 
Calls in the dawn ! all offices are done. 
Save what I fail in ; but the point is this, 
An end, and that is all ! \^Exit. 

Scene III. The same Part of the Forest as hi Scene I 

Enter Arcite, with meat, wine^ files, etc, 

Arcite. I should be near the place. — Ho, cousin 
Palamon ! 

Enter Palamon 

Palamon. Arcite ? 

Arcite, The same ; I 've brought you 

food and files. 
Come forth and fear not ; here 's no Theseus. 

Pala?non. Nor none so honest, Arcite. 

Arcite. That 's no matter ; 

We '11 argue that hereafter. Come, take courage. 



96 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act ill 

You shall not die thus beastly ; here, sir, drink. 

I know you 're faint ; then I '11 talk further with you. 

Palamon, Arcite, thou mightst now poison me. 

Arcite, I might ; 

But I must fear you first. Sit down ; and, good now, 
No more of these vain parleys ! Let us not, 10 

Having our ancient reputation with us. 
Make talk for fools and cowards. To your health I 

\Drinks. 

Palamo7i, Do. 

Arcite, Pray, sit down then ; and let me en- 

treat you, 
By all the honesty and honour in you. 
No mention of this woman ! 't will disturb us ; 
We shall have time enough. 

Palamon, Well, sir, I '11 pledge you. 

\D7i71ks, 

Arcite. Drink a good hearty draught ; it breeds 
good blood, man. 
Do not you feel it thaw you ? 

Palamon, Stay ; I '11 tell you 

After a draught or two more. 

Arcite. Spare it not ; 

The duke has more, coz. Eat now. 

Palatnon. Yes. 

Arcite, I am glad 

You have so good a stomach. 

Pala??ion. I am gladder 21 

I have so good meat to 't. 



Scene III] The Two Noble Kinsmen 97 

Arcite. Is 't not mad lodging 

Here in the wild woods, cousin ? 

Palaiti07i. Yes, for them 

That have wild consciences. 

Arcite, How tastes your victuals ? 

Your hunger needs no sauce, I see. 

Pala77io7i. Not much ; 

But if it did, yours is too tart, sweet cousin. 
What is this ? 

Arcite. Venison. 

Pala77io7i. 'T is a lusty meat. 

Give me more wine : here, Arcite, to the wenches 
We have known in our days ! The lord-steward's 

daughter ; 
Do you remember her ? 

Arcite. After you, coz. 30 

Fala77io7i. She lov'd a black-hair'd man. 

Arcite. She did so ; well, sir ? 

Pala77io7i, And I have heard some call him Arcite ; 
and — 

Arcite, Out with it, faith ! 

Pala77i07i. She met him in an arbour. 

What did she there, coz ? play o' the virginals ? 

Arcite. Something she did, sir. 

Paia77io7i, Made her groan a month for 't ; 

Or two, or three, or ten. 

A7'cite. The marshal's sister 

Had her share too, as I remember, cousin. 
Else there be tales abroad ; you '11 pledge her ? 

TWO NOBLE KINSMEN — 7 



98 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act iii 

Faia?non, Yes. 

Arcite. A pretty brown wench 't is ! There was a 
time 
When young men went a-hunting, and a wood, 40 

And a broad beech ; and thereby hangs a tale. — 
Heigh-ho ! 

Fa/amo7t, For Emily, upon my life ! Fool, 
Away with this strain 'd mirth ! I say again. 
That sigh was breath 'd for Emily ! Base cousin, 
Dar'st thou break first ? 

Arcite. You are wide. 

Palamon, By heaven and earth. 

There 's nothing in thee honest ! 

Arcite. Then I '11 leave you ; 

You are a beast now. 

Palamon, As thou mak'st me, traitor. 

Arcite, There 's all things needful, — files, and 
shirts, and perfumes. 
I '11 come again some two hours hence, and bring 
That that shall quiet all. 

Palaino?!. A sword and armour ? 50 

Af'cite. Fear me not. You are now too foul ; fare- 
well ! 
Get off your trinkets ; you shall want nought. 

Palamon. Sirrah — 

Arcite. I '11 hear no more ! \_Exit. 

Palamon. If he keep touch, he dies for 't. \Exit. 



Scene IV] The Two Noble Kinsmen 99 

Scene IV. Afiother Fart of the Forest 

Enter Gaoler's Daughter 

Daughter, I 'm very cold ; and all the stars are out 
too, 
The little stars, and all that look like aglets. 
The sun has seen my folly. Palamon ! 
Alas, no ; he 's in heaven ! — Where am I now ? — 
Yonder 's the sea, and there 's a ship ; how 't tumbles ! 
And there "s a rock lies watching under water; 
Now, now, it beats upon it ! now, now, now ! 
There 's a leak sprung, a sound one ; how they cry ! 
Run her before the wind, you '11 lose all else 1 
Up with a course or two, and tack about, boys ! 10 

Good night, good night ; y' are gone ! — I 'm very 

hungry. 
Would I could find a fine frog ! he would tell me 
News from all parts o' the world ; then would I make 
A carack of a cockle-shell, and sail 
By east and north-east to the King of Pigmies, 
For he tells fortunes rarely. Now my father, 
Twenty to one, is truss'd up in a trice 
To-morrow morning ; I '11 say never a word. 

[Sings] For r II cut 7nygree?i coat a foot above my hiee ; 
And Pll clip 7?iy yellow locks an inch below 
mine e^e. 20 

Hey, no7i7iy, nonny, nonny. 
He V buy me a white cut, forth for to ride, 



lOO The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act iii 

And I ^n go seek him through the 7V07'ld that is so wide. 
Hey, 7io?iny, nonny, nonny, 
O for a prick now, like a nightingale, 
To put my breast against ! I shall sleep like a top else. 

{Exit. 

Scene V. A?wther Fart of the Forest 

Enter Gerrold, four Countrv'men as morris-dancers, 
another as the Bavian,y?^'^ Wenches, and a Taborer 

Gerrold. Fie, fie ! 
What tediosity and disensanity 
Is here among ye ! Have my rudiments 
Been labour'd so long with ye, milk'd unto ye, 
And, by a figure, even the very plum-broth 
And marrow of my understanding laid upon ye, 
And do you still cry ^ where,' and 'how,' and 'where- 
fore ? ' 
You most coarse frize capacities, ye jane judgments, 
Have I said ' thus let be,' and ' there let be,' 
And ' then let be,' and no man understand me ? lo 

Proh Deum, medius fidius, ye are all dunces ! 
For why, here stand I ; here the duke comes ; there are 

you. 
Close in the thicket ; the duke appears, I meet him, 
And unto him I utter learned things, 
And many figures ; he hears, and nods, and hums, 
And then cries ' rare ! ' and I go forward ; at length 
I fling my cap up ; mark there I then do you, 



Scene V] The Two Noble Kinsmen loi 

As once did Meleager and the boar, 

Break comely out before him, Hke true lovers, 

Cast yourselves in a body decently, 20 

And sweetly, by a figure, trace and turn, boys ! 

1 Cotmtryman. And sweetly we will do it, master 

Gerrold. 

2 Countryman. Draw^ up the company. Where 's the 

taborer ? 

3 Countryman, Why, Timothy ! 

Taborer, Here, my mad boys ; have at ye ! 

Gerrold. But I say, where 's their women ? 

4 Country7nan, Here 's Friz and Maudlin. 

2 Countryman. And little Luce with the white legs, 

and bouncing Barbary. 
I Cotmtryman. And freckled Nell, that never failed 

her master. 
Gerrold. Where be your ribands, maids? Swim 
with your bodies, 
And carry it sweetly and deliverly ; 
And now and then a favour and a frisk ! 30 

Nell. Let us alone, sir. 
Gerrold. Where 's the rest o' the music ? 

3 Countryman. Dispers'd as you commanded. 
Gerrold. Couple, then, 

And see what 's wanting. Where 's the Bavian ? — 
My friend, carry your tail without offence 
Or scandal to the ladies ; and be sure 
You tumble with audacity and manhood ; 
And when you bark, do it with judgment. 



I02 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act iii 

Bavian. Yes, sir. 

Gerrold, Quousque tandem ? Here is a woman 

wanting ! 
4 Coiint?'yvian. We may go whistle ; all the fat 's i' 

the fire ! 
Gerrold, We have, 40 

As learned authors utter, wash'd a tile; 
We hav^e been fatuus, and labour'd vainly. 

2 Countryman. This is that scornful piece, that 

scur\y hilding, 
That gave her promise faithfully she would 
Be here, Cicely the sempster's daughter ! 
The next gloves that I give her shall be dog-skin ; 
Nay, an she fail me once — You can tell. Areas, 
She swore, by wine and bread, she would not break. 

Gerrold. An eel and woman, 
A learned poet says, unless by the tail 50 

And with thy teeth thou hold, will either fail. 
In manners this was false position. 

I Countryynan. A fire-ill take her! does she flinch now? 

3 Coimtryman. What 
Shall we determine, sir ? 

Gerrold. Nothing ; 

Our business is become a nullity. 
Yea, and a woeful and a piteous nullity, 

4 Countryman. Now, when the credit of our town 

lay on it, 
Now to be frampal I 
Go thy ways ; I '11 remember thee, I '11 fit thee 1 



Scene V] The Two Noble Kinsmen 103 

Ejiter Gaoler's Daughter, ajid si?igs 

The George alow came from the south, 60 

From the coast of Barbary-a ; 
And there he jnet with brave gat/ants of war, 

By one, by tzoo, by three-a. 
Welt haiVd, well haird, you folly gallants I 

And whither now are you bound-a ? 
Oj let me have your compajiy 

Till I come to the Sound- a ! 
There was three fools fell out about a?i howlet; 

The one said it was an owl, 

The other he said 7iay, 70 

The third he said it was a hawk, 

And her bells were cut away. 

3 Countryman, There 's a dainty mad woman, master, 
Comes i' the nick, — as mad as a March hare ! 
If we can get her dance, we are made again ; 
I warrant her she '11 do the rarest gambols ! 

I Countfyman. A mad woman ! We are made, boys. 

Gerrold. And are you mad, good woman ? 

Daughter. I 'd be sorrj' else ; 

Give me your hand. 

Gerrold, Why ? 

Daughter. I can tell your fortune : 

You are a fool. Tell ten. I have pos'd him. Buz ! 
Friend, you must eat no white bread ; if you do, Si 

Your teeth will bleed extremely. Shall we dance, ho ? 
I know you ; you 're a tinker. Sirrah tinker, — 



104 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act ill 

G err old. Dii boni ! 
A tinker, damsel ? 

Daughter, Or a conjurer. 

Raise me a devil now, and let him play 
' Qui passa' o' the bells and bones ! 

G err old. Go, take her. 

And fluently persuade her to a peace. 
Et opus exegi, quod nee lovis ira, nee ignis — 89 

Strike up, and lead her in. 

2 Countryman. Come, lass, let 's trip it! 
Daughter. I '11 lead. 

3 Countryman. Do, do. [Wind horns. 
Gerrold. Persuasively and cunningly ; away, boys ! 

I hear the horns ; give me some meditation, 
And mark your cue. — [Exeunt all but Gerrold. 

Pallas inspire me ! 

Enter Theseus, Pirithous, Hippolyta, Emilia, 
Arcite, and train 

Theseus. This way the stag took. 
Gerrold. Stay, and edify ! 

Theseus. What have w^e here ? 
Pirithous. Some country sport, upon my life, sir. 
Theseus. Well, sir, go forward ; we will edify. — 
Ladies, sit down ! we '11 stay it. 

Gerrold. Thou doughty duke, all hail ! — All hail, 
sweet ladies ! 100 

Theseus, This is a cold beginning. 



Scene V] The Two Noble Kinsmen 105 

Gerrold, If you but favour, our country pastime 
made is. 
We are a few of those collected here 
That ruder tongues distinguish villager ; 
And to say verity, and not to fable. 
We are a merry rout, or else a rable, 
Or company, or, by a figure, choris, 
That fore thy dignity will dance a morris. 
And I, that am the rectifier of all. 

By title Pedagogus, that let fall no 

The birch upon the breeches of the small ones, 
And humble with a ferula the tall ones. 
Do here present this machine, or this frame ; 
And, dainty duke, whose doughty dismal fame 
From Dis to Daedalus, from post to pillar. 
Is blown abroad, help me, thy poor well-wilier, 
And with thy twinkling eyes look right and straight 
Upon this mighty morr — of mickle weight — 
— is now come3 in, which being glued together 
Makes morris^ and the cause that we came hither, 120 
The body of our sport, of no small study. 
I first appear, though rude, and raw, and muddy. 
To speak, before thy noble grace, this tenor ; 
At whose great feet I offer up my penner. 
The next, the Lord of May and Lady bright. 
The Chambermaid and Servingman, by night 
That seek out silent hanging ; then mine host 
And his fat spouse, that welcomes to their cost 
The galled traveller, and with a beck'ning 



io6 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act iii 

Informs the tapster to inflame the reck'ning; 130 

Then the beast-eating Clown, and next the Fool, 
The Bavian, with long tail and eke long tool ; 
Cum multis aliis that make a dance. 
Say ay, and all shall presently advance. 

Theseus, Ay, ay, by any means, dear domine ! 

Pirithous, Produce. 

Gerrold, Intrate, filii ! Come forth, and foot it. 

Enter the four Countrymen, the Bavian, the Taborer, 
the five Wenches and the Gaoler's Daughter, with 
others of both sexes. They dance a morris. After 
which Gerrold speaks the Epilogue 

Ladies, if we have been merry, 

And have pleas'd ye with a derry, 

And a derry, and a down, 140 

Say the schoolmaster 's no clown. — 

Duke, if we have pleas'd thee too. 

And have done as good boys should do, 

Give us but a tree or twain 

For a Maypole, and again. 

Ere another year run out. 

We '11 make thee laugh, and all this rout. 

Theseus, Take twenty, domine. How does my sweet- 
heart ? 

Hippolyta. Never so pleas'd, sir. 

Effiilia. 'T was an excellent dance ; and, for a 
preface, 150 

I never heard a better. 



Scene VI] The Two Noble Kinsmen 107 

Theseus. Schoolmaster, I thank you. — 

One see 'em all rewarded. 

Piriihous. And here 's something 

To paint your pole withal. \_Gives yjioney. 

Theseus. Now to our sports again ! 

Gerrold. May the stag thou hunt'st stand long, 
And thy dogs be swift and strong ! 
May they kill him without lets, 
And the ladies eat his doucets ! — 
Come, we are all made I — Dii Deaeque omnes ! 

[ Wind horns. 
Ye have danc'd rarely, wenches ! \Exeunt. 

Scene VI. The same Part of the Forest as i?i 
Scene III 

E^iter Pal AM ON fro in the bicsh 

Pahimo7i, About this hour my cousin gave his faith 
To visit me again, and with him bring 
Two swords and two good armours ; if he fail 
He 's neither man nor soldier. When he left me, 
I did not think a week could have restor'd 
My lost strength to me, I was grown so low 
And crest-fallen with my wants ; I thank thee, Arcite, 
Thou art yet a fair foe, and I feel myself, 
With this refreshing, able once again 
To out-dure danger. To delay it longer 10 

Would make the world think, when it comes to hearing. 
That I lay fatting like a swine, to tight, 



io8 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act ill 

And not a soldier. Therefore this blest morning 
Shall be the last, and that sword he refuses, 
If it but hold, I kill him with ; 't is justice. 
So, love and fortune for me ! — O, good morrow ! 

Enter Arcite, with arrno^irs aiid swords 

Arcite. Good morrow, noble kinsman ! 

Palamon. I have put you 

To too much pains, sir. 

Arcite, That too much, fair cousin, 

Is but a debt to honour, and my duty. 

Palamon, Would you were so in all, sir ! I could 
wish ye 20 

As kind a kinsman as you force me find 
A beneficial foe, that my embraces 
Might thank ye, not my blows. 

Arcite, I shall think either, 

Well done, a noble recompense. 

Pala77ion, Then I shall quit you. 

Arcite. Defy me in these fair terms, and you shew 
More than a mistress to me ; no more anger, 
As you love any thing that 's honourable ! 
We were not bred to talk, man ; when we are arm'd. 
And both upon our guards, then let our fury, 
Like meeting of two tides, fly strongly from us ! 30 

And then to whom the birthright of this beauty 
Truly pertains — without upbraidings, scorns, 
Despisings of our persons, and such poutings. 
Fitter for girls and schoolboys — will be seen. 



k 



Scene VI] The Two Noble Kinsmen 109 

And quickly, yours or mine. Will 't please you arm, 

sir ? 
Or if you feel yourself not fitting yet. 
And furnish'd with your old strength, I '11 stay, cousin, 
And every day discourse you into health, 
As I am spar'd. Your person I am friends with, 
And I could wish I had not said I lov'd her, 40 

Though I had died ; but, loving such a lady, 
And justifying my love, I must not fly from 't. 

Palamon, Arcite, thou art so brave an enemy 
That no man but thy cousin 's fit to kill thee. 
I 'm well and lusty ; choose your arms. 

Arcite, Choose you, sir. 

Pala7non, Wilt thou exceed in all, or dost thou do it 
To make me spare thee ? 

Arcite, If you think so, cousin, 

You are deceiv'd ; for, as I am a soldier, 
I will not spare you ! 

Palamon. That 's well said. 

Arcite. You 'II find it. 

Palamon, Then, as I am an honest man, and love 
With all the justice of affection, 51 

I '11 pay thee soundly ! This I '11 take. 

Arcite, That 's mine then. 

I '11 arm you first. \_Proceeds to arm Palamon, 

Palamon, Do. Pray thee, tell me, cousin, 

Where gott'st thou this good armour ? 

Arcite, 'T is the duke's ; 

And, to say true, I stole it. — Do I pinch you ? 



no The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act iii 

Pala??ion. No. 

Arcite, Is 't not too heavy ? 

Fa/amon, I have worn a Hghter ; 

But I shall make it serve. 

Arcite, I '11 buckle 't close. 

Palamon, By any means. 

Arcite. You care not for a grand-guard ? 

Pala77ion. No, no ; we '11 use no horses ; I perceive 
You 'd fain be at that fight. 

Arcite, I am indifferent. 6i 

Palavion. Faith, so am I. Good cousin, thrust the 
buckle 
Through far enough. 

Arcite. I warrant you. 

Palainon, My casque now. 

Arcite. Will you fight bare-arm 'd ? 

Palavi07i. We shall be the nimbler. 

Arcite. But use your gauntlets though. Those are 
o' the least; 
Prithee take mine, good cousin. 

Pala77ion. Thank you, Arcite. 

How do I look ? am I fallen much away ? 

Arcite, Faith, very little ; love has us'd you kindly. 

PalamoTi. I '11 warrant thee I '11 strike home. 

Arcite, Do, and spare not ! 

I '11 give you cause, sweet cousin. 

Pala77ion {artni7ig Arcite^. Now to you, sir. 70 

Methinks this armour 's very like that, Arcite, 
Thou wor'st that day the three kings fell, but lighter. 



Scene VI] The Two Noble Kinsmen 1 1 1 

Arcite, That was a very good one ; and that day, 
I well remember, you outdid me, cousin. 
I never saw such valour ; when you charg'd 
Upon the left wing of the enemy, 
I spurr'd hard to come up, and under me 
I had a right good horse. 

Palamo7t. You had indeed ; 

A bright bay, I remember. 

Arcite. Yes. But all 

Was vainly labour'd in me ; you outwent me, 80 

Nor could my wishes reach you ; yet a little 
I did by imitation. 

Palamoii, More by virtue ; 

You are modest, cousin. 

Arcite. When I saw you charge first, 

Methought I heard a dreadful clap of thunder 
Break from the troop. 

Palamo7i. But still before that flew 

The lightning of your valour. Stay a little ! 
Is not this piece too strait? 

Arcite. No, no ; 't is well. 

Palamon. I would have nothing hurt thee but my 
sword ; 
A bruise would be dishonour. 

Arcite. Now I am perfect. 89 

Palamon. Stand off then ! 

Arcite. Take my sword ; I hold it better. 

Palamon. I thank ye, no ; keep it, your life lies on 
it. 



112 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act iii 

Here 's one, if it but hold, I ask no more 

For all my hopes. My cause and honour guard me ! 

Arcite, And me my love ! Is there aught else to 
say? 
\They bow several ways ; then advance and stand, 

Pala?non, This only, and no more : thou art mine 
aunt's son, 
And that blood we desire to shed is mutual ; 
In me thine, and in thee mine. My sword 
Is in my hand, and, if thou killest me. 
The gods and I forgive thee. If there be 
A place prepar'd for those that sleep in honour, loo 

I wish his weary soul that falls may win it. 
Fight bravely, cousin ; give me thy noble hand. 

Arcite. Here, Palamon ; this hand shall never more 
Come near thee with such friendship. 

Palamon. I commend thee. 

Arcite. If I fall, curse me, and say I was a coward ; 
For none but such dare die in these just trials. 
Once more farewell, my cousin ! 

Fala?no7i, Farewell, Arcite ! 

\They fight. Horns within ; they stand. 

Arcite. Lo, cousin, lo ! our folly has undone us ! 

Palamon. Why? 

Arcite. This is the duke, a-hunting as I told you ; 
If we be found, we are wretched. O, retire, m 

For honour's sake and safety, presently 
Into your bush again, sir ! We shall find 
Too many hours to die in. Gentle cousin. 



Scene VI] The Two Noble Kinsmen 1 13 

If you be seen, you perish instantly 

For breaking prison, and I, if you reveal me. 

For my contempt ; then all the world will scorn us, 

And say we had a noble difference, 

But base disposers of it. 

Palamon. No, no, cousin ; 

I will no more be hidden, nor put off 120 

This great adventure to a second trial. 
I know your cunning, and I know your cause. 
He that faints now, shame take him ! Put thyself 
Upon thy present guard — 

Arcite, You are not mad ? 

Falufnon, Or I will make the advantage of this hour 
Mine own ; and what to come shall threaten me, 
I fear less than my fortune. Know, weak cousin, 
I love Emilia ; and in that I '11 bury 
Thee and all crosses else. 

Arcite, Then come what can come, 

Thou shalt know, Palamon, I dare as well . 130 

Die as discourse or sleep ; only this fears me, 
The law will have the honour of our ends. 
Have at thy life ! 

Palamon, Look to thine own well, Arcite ! 

[ Th ey figh t again . Horns, 

Enter Theseus, Hippolyta, Emilia, Pirithous, a7id 

train 

Theseus. What ignorant and mad-malicious traitors 
Are you that, 'gainst the tenor of my laws, 

TWO NOBLE KINSMEN — 8 



1 14 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act ill 

Are making battle, thus like knights appointed, 
Without my leave, and officers of arms ? 
By Castor, both shall die ! 

Palamon, Hold thy word, Theseus ! 

We are certainly both traitors, both despisers 
Of thee and of thy goodness. I am Palamon, 140 

That cannot love thee, he that broke thy prison. 
Think well what that deserves ! and this is Arcite ; 
A bolder traitor never trod thy ground, 
A falser ne'er seem'd friend. This is the man 
Was begg'd and banish 'd ; this is he contemns thee 
And what thou dar'st do, and in this disguise, 
Against thine own edict, follows thy sister, 
That fortunate bright star, the fair Emilia — 
Whose servant, if there be a right in seeing, 
And first bequeathing of the soul to, justly 150 

I am — and, which is more, dares think her his ! 
This treachery, like a most trusty lover, 
I call'd him now to answer. If thou beest, 
As thou art spoken, great and virtuous. 
The true decider of all injuries. 

Say, ' Fight again ! ' and thou shalt see me, Theseus, 
Do such a justice thou thyself wilt en\y ; 
Then take my life ! I '11 woo thee to 't. 

Pirithous. O heaven. 

What more than man is this ! 

Theseus, I Ve sworn. 

Arcite. We seek not 

Thy breath of mercy, Theseus ! 'T is to me 160 



Scene VI] The Two Noble Kinsmen 115 

A thing as soon to die as thee to say it, 

And no more mov'd. Where this man calls me traitor, 

Let me say thus much : if in love be treason. 

In service of so excellent a beauty — 

As I love most, and in that faith will perish. 

As I have brought my life here to confirm it, 

As I have serv'd her truest, worthiest. 

As I dare kill this cousin that denies it — 

So let me be most traitor, and ye please me. 

For scorning thy edict, duke, ask that lady 170 

Why she is fair, and why her eyes command me 

Stay here to love her ? and if she say traitor, 

I am a villain fit to lie unburied. 

Pala^non, Thou shalt have pity of us both, O Theseus, 
If unto neither thou show mercy ; stop. 
As thou art just, thy noble ear against us ; 
As thou art valiant, for thy cousin's soul. 
Whose twelve strong labours crown his memory. 
Let 's die together, at one instant, duke ! 
Only a little let him fall before me, 180 

That I may tell my soul he shall not have her. 

Theseus. I grant your wish ; for to say true, your 
cousin 
Has ten times more offended, for I gave him 
More mercy than you found, sir, your offences 
Being no more than his, — None here speak for 'em 1 
For ere the sun set, both shall sleep for ever. 

Hippolyta. Alas, the pity ! now or never, sister, 
Speak, not to be denied ; that face of yours 



Ii6 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act III 

Will bear the curses else of after ages 
For these lost cousins. 

Emilia. In my face, dear sister, 190 

I find no anger to 'em, nor no ruin ; 
The misadventure of their own eyes kill 'em. 
Yet that I will be woman and have pity, 
My knees shall grow to the ground but I '11 get mercy. 
Help me, dear sister ! in a deed so virtuous 
The powers of all women will be with us. — 
Most royal brother — 

Hippolyta, Sir, by our tie of marriage — 

Emilia, By your own spotless honour — 

Hippolyta. By that faith, 

That fair hand, and that honest heart you gave me — 

Emilia, By that you would have pity in another, 200 
By your own virtues infinite — 

Hippolyta, By valour, 

By all the chaste nights I have ever pleas 'd you — 

Theseus, These are strange conjurings ! 

Pirithous, Nay, then, I '11 in too ! — 

By all our friendship, sir, by all our dangers. 
By all you love most, — wars, and this sweet lady — 

Efnilia, By that you would have trembled to deny 
A blushing maid — 

Hippolyta. By your own eyes, by strength, 

In which you swore I went beyond all women. 
Almost all men, and yet I yielded, Theseus — 

Pirithous, To crown all this, by your most noble 

soul, 210 



Scene VI] The Two Noble Kinsmen 117 

Which cannot want due mercy, I beg first ! 

Hippolyta. Next hear my prayers ! 

Eiiiilia, Last, let me entreat, sir ! 

Pirithous. For mercy ! 

Hippolyta, Mercy ! 

E^nilia. Mercy on these princes ! 

Theseus, Ye make my faith reel ; say I felt 
Compassion to 'em both, how would you place it ? 

Emilia. Upon their lives, but with their banishments. 

Theseus, You are a right woman, sister ! you have 

pity, 
But want the understanding where to use it. 
If you desire their lives, invent a way 
Safer than banishment. Can these two live 220 

And have the agony of love about 'em, 
And not kill one another ? Every day 
They 'd fight about you, hourly bring your honour 
In public question with their swords. Be wise then 
And here forget 'em ; it concerns your credit 
And my oath equally. I have said they die ! 
Better they fall by the law than one another. 
Bow not my honour. 

Emilia, O my noble brother, 

That oath was rashly made, and in your anger ; 
Your reason will not hold it. If such vows 230 

Stand for express will, all the world must perish. 
Beside, I have another oath 'gainst yours. 
Of more authority, I 'm sure more love ; 
Not made in passion neither, but good heed. 



Ii8 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act iii 

Theseus. What is it, sister ? 

Pirithous. Urge it home, brave lady ! 

Emilia, That you would ne'er deny me anything 
Fit for my modest suit and your free granting. 
I tie you to your word now ; if ye fail in 't, 
Think how you maim your honour, 

For now I am set a-begging, sir, I am deaf 240 

To all but your compassion. How their lives 
Might breed the ruin of my name's opinion ! 
Shall any thing that loves me perish for me ? 
That were a cruel wisdom ; do men proin 
The straight young boughs that blush with thousand 

blossoms, 
Because they may be rotten ? O duke Theseus, 
The goodly mothers that have groan 'd for these, 
And all the longing maids that ever lov'd. 
If your vow stand, shall curse me and my beauty. 
And, in their funeral songs for these two cousins, 250 
Despise my cruelty and cry woe worth me. 
Till I am nothing but the scorn of women. 
For heaven's sake save their lives, and banish 'em ! 

Thesetcs. On what conditions ? 

Emilia, Swear 'em never more 

To make me their contention or to know me. 
To tread upon thy dukedom, and to be, 
Wherever they shall travel, ever strangers 
To one another. 

Palamo7i. I '11 be cut a-pieces 

Before I take this oath I Forget I love her ? 



Scene VI] The Two Noble Kinsmen 119 

all ye gods, despise me then ! Thy banishment 260 

1 not mislike, so we may fairly carry 

Our swords and cause along ; else never trifle, 
But take our lives, duke ! I must love and will. 
And for that love must and dare kill this cousin 
On any piece the earth has. 

Theseus. Will you, Arcite, 

Take these conditions ? 

Falamo7i. He 's a villain then ! 

Firithous. These are men ! 

Arcite, No, never, duke ; 't is worse to me than beg- 
ging 
To take my life so basely. Though I think 
I never shall enjoy her, yet I '11 preserve 270 

The honour of affection and die for her, 
Make death a devil. 

Theseus. What may be done ? for now I feel com- 
passion. 

Firithous, Let it not fall again, sir ! 

Theseus. Say, Emilia, 

If one of them were dead, as one must, are you 
Content to take the other to your husband ? 
They cannot both enjoy you. They are princes 
As goodly as your own eyes, and as noble 
As ever fame yet spoke of. Look upon 'em, 
And if you can love, end this difference ; 280 

I give consent. — Are you content, too, princes ? 

Both. With all our souls. 

Theseus, He that she refuses 



1 20 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act ill 

Must die then. 

Both, Any death thou canst invent, duke. 

Falamo?i. If I fall from that mouth, I fall with fa- 
vour. 
And lovers yet unborn shall bless my ashes. 

Arcite, If she refuses me, yet my grave will wed me, 
And soldiers sing my epitaph. 

Theseics. Make choice then. 

E77iilia, I cannot, sir ; they are both too excellent ; 
For me, a hair shall never fall of these men. 

Hippolyta, What will become of 'em ? 

Theseus, Thus I ordain it ; 

And, by mine honour, once again it stands, 291 

Or both shall die ! — You shall both to your country, 
And each, within this month, accompanied 
With three fair knights, appear again in this place. 
In which I '11 plant a pyramid ; and whether, 
Before us that are here, can force his cousin 
By fair and knightly strength to touch the pillar, 
He shall enjoy her ; the other lose his head 
And all his friends, nor shall he grudge to fall, 
Nor think he dies with interest in this lady. 300 

Will this content ye ? 

Pala^non. Yes. — Here, cousin Arcite, 

I am friends again till that hour. 

Arcite. I embrace ye. 

Theseus. Are you content, sister ? 

Etnilia. Yes ; I must, sir, 

Else both miscarry. 



Scene VI] The Two Noble Kinsmen 121 

Theseus. Come, shake hands again then ; 

And take heed, as you are gentlemen, this quarrel 
Sleep till the hour prefix'd, and hold your course. 

Palamon. We dare not fail thee, Theseus. 

Theseus, Come, I '11 give ye 

Now usage like to princes and to friends. 
When ye return, who wins, I '11 settle here ; 
Who loses, yet I '11 weep upon his bier. 310 

\Exeunt, 




"I SAW IT WAS YOUR DAUGHTER." 



ACT IV 

Scene I. Athens, A Roo7n in the Prison 

Enter Gaoler and First Friend 

Gaoler, Hear you no more ? Was nothing said of 
me 
Concerning the escape of Palamon ? 
Good sir, remember ! 

I Friend, Nothing that I heard, 

For I came home before the business 

122 



Scene I] The Two Noble Kinsmen 123 

Was fully ended ; yet I might perceive, 

Ere I departed, a great likelihood 

Of both their pardons, for Hippolyta 

And fair-eyed Emily upon their knees 

Begg'd with such handsome pity that the duke 

Methought stood staggering whether he should follow 

His rash oath or the sweet compassion 11 

Of those two ladies ; and to second them, 

That truly noble prince Pirithous, 

Half his own heart, set in too, that I hope 

All shall be well. Neither heard I one question 

Of your name or his scape. 

Gaoler, Pray heaven, it hold so ! 

Enter Second Friend 

2 Friend. Be of good comfort, man 1 I bring you 
news. 
Good news. 

Gaoler, They 're welcome. 

2 Friend. Palamon has clear 'd you 

And got your pardon, and discovered how 
And by whose means he scap'd, which was your daugh- 
ter's, 20 
Whose pardon is procur'd too ; and the prisoner — 
Not to be held ungrateful to her goodness — 
Has given a sum of money to her marriage, 
A large one, I '11 assure you. 

Gaoler. Ye 're a good man 

And ever bring good news. 



124 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act IV 

1 Friend, How was it ended? 

2 Frieiid, Why, as it should be : they that never 

begg'd 
But they prevaiPd had their suits fairly granted ; 
The prisoners have their lives. 

1 Friend, I knew 't would be so. 

2 Friend. But there be new conditions which you '11 

hear of 
At better time. 

Gaoler. I hope they are good. 

2 Friend. They 're honourable ; 

How good they '11 prove, I know not. 

1 Friend. 'T will be known. 31 

Enter Wooer 

Wooer. Alas, sir, where 's your daughter ? 

Gaoler. Why do you ask ? 

Wooer. O, sir, when did you see her ? 

2 Friend. How he looks ! 
Gaoler. This morning. 

Wooer. Was she well ? was she in health, sir ? 

Where did she sleep ? 

I Friend. These are strange questions. 

Gaoler. I do not think she was very well, for, now 
You make me mind her, but this very day 
I ask'd her questions, and she answer'd me 
So far from what she was, so childishly. 
So sillily, as if she were a fool, 40 

An innocent ; and I was very angry. 



Scene I] The Two Noble Kinsmen 125 

But what of her, sir ? 

Wooer, Nothing but my pity ; 

But you must know it, and as good by me 
As by another that less loves her. 

Gaoler, Well, sir ? 

1 Friend, Not right ? 

2 Friend, Not well ? 

Wooer. No, sir, not well ; 

'T is too true, she is mad. 

I Friend, It cannot be. 

Wooer, Believe, you '11 find it so. 

Gaoler, I half suspected 

What you have told me ; the gods comfort her 1 
Either this was her love to Palamon, 
Or fear of my miscarrying on his scape, 50 

Or both. 

Wooer, 'T is likely. 

Gaoler, But why all this haste, sir ? 

Wooer, I '11 tell you quickly. As I late was angling 
In the great lake that lies behind the palace. 
From the far shore, thick-set with reeds and sedges, 
As patiently I was attending sport, 
I heard a voice, a shrill one, and attentive 
I gave my ear ; when I might well perceive 
'T was one that sung, and, by the smallness of it, 
A boy or woman. I then left my angle 
To his own skill, came near, but yet perceiv'd not 60 
Who made the sound, the rushes and the reeds 
Had so encompass'd it. I laid me down, 



126 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act iv 

And listen'd to the words she sung ; for then, 
Through a small glade cut by the fishermen, 
I saw it was your daughter. 

Gaoler, Pray go on, sir ! 

Wooer, She sung much, but no sense ; only I heard 
her. 
Repeat this often : * Palamon is gone. 
Is gone to the wood to gather mulberries ; 
I '11 find him out to-morrow.' 

I Friend, Pretty soul ! 

Wooer, 'His shackles will betray him, he'll be 
taken ; 70 

And what shall I do then ? I '11 bring a bevy, 
A hundred black-eyed maids that love as I do. 
With chaplets on their heads of daffodillies. 
With cherry lips and cheeks of damask roses, 
And all we '11 dance an antic fore the duke, 
And beg his pardon.' Then she talk'd of you, sir ; 
That you must lose your head to-morrow morning. 
And she must gather flowers to bury you. 
And see the house made handsome. Then she sung 
Nothing but ' Willow, willow, willow ; ' and between 80 
Ever was, ' Palamon, fair Palamon ! ' 
And * Palamon was a tall young man ! ' The place 
Was knee-deep where she sat ; her careless tresses 
A wreath of bulrush rounded ; about her stuck 
Thousand fresh water-flowers of several colours ; 
That methought she appear'd like the fair nymph 
That feeds the lake with waters, or as Iris 



Scene I] The Two Noble Kinsmen 127 

Newly dropt down from heaven. Rings she made 

Of rushes that grew by, and to 'em spoke 

The prettiest posies, — ' Thus our true love 's tied,' 90 

^ This you may lose, not me,' and many a one ; 

And then she wept, and sung again, and sigh'd, 

And with the same breath smil'd and kiss'd her hand. 

2 Friend. Alas, what pity 't is ! 

Wooer, I made in to her ; 

She saw me, and straight sought the flood ; I sav'd 

her, 
And set her safe to land, when presently 
She sHpt away, and to the city made 
With such a cry and swiftness that, believe me, 
She left me far behind her. Three or four 
I saw from far off cross her, one of 'em 100 

I knew to be your brother ; where she stay'd, 
And fell, scarce to be got away. I left them with her. 
And hither came to tell you. Here they are ! 

Enter Gaoler's Brother, Daughter, and others 

Daughter, [Sings] May you never more enjoy the 
lights etc. 
Is not this a fine song ? 

Brother, O, a very fine one 1 

Daughter, I can sing twenty more. 

Brother. I think you can. 

Daughter. Yes, truly can I ; I can sing ' The Broom,' 
And * Bonny Robin.' Are not you a tailor ? 

Brother. Yes. 



128 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act IV 

Daughter. Where 's my wedding-gown ? 

Brother. I '11 bring it tomorrow. 

Daughter. Do, very rarely ; I must be abroad else, 

To call the maids and pay the minstrels. 112 

[Sings] O fair, O sweet, etc. 

Brother. You must even take it patiently. 

Gaoler. 'T is true. 

Daughter. Good even, good men I Pray did you 
ever hear 
Of one young Palamon ? 

Gaoler. Yes, wench, we know him. 

Daughter. Is 't not a fine young gentleman ? 

Gaoler. 'T is love ! 

Brother. By no means cross her ; she is then dis- 
temper'd 
Far worse than now she shews. 

I Friefid. Yes, he 's a fine man. 

Daughter. O, is he so ? You have a sister ? 

I Friend. Yes. 

Daughter. But she shall never have him, tell her so. 
For a trick that I know ; y' had best look to her, 122 
For if she see him once, she 's gone, she 's done 
And undone in an hour. All the young maids 
Of our town are in love with him, but I laugh at 'em 
And let 'em all alone ; is 't not a wise course ? 

I Fnend. Yes. 

Daughter. They come from all parts of the dukedom 
to him ; 
I '11 warrant ye — 



Scene I] The Two Noble Kinsmen 129 

Gaoler. She ^s lost, 

Past all cure ! 

Brother. Heaven forbid, man ! 130 

Daughter. Come hither ; you 're a wise man. 

1 Friend. Does she know him ? 

2 Friend. No ; would she did ! 

Daughter, You 're master of a ship ? 

Gaoler. Yes. 

Daughter, Where 's your compass ? 

Gaoler, Here. 

Daughter. Set it to the north ; 

And now direct your course to the wood where Pala- 

mon 
Lies longing for me ; for the tackling 
Let me alone. — Come, weigh, my hearts, cheerly ! 

All. Owgh, owgh, owgh ! 't is up, the wind is fair ; 
Top the bowling ; out with the mainsail ! — 
Where 's your whistle, master ? 

Brother. Let 's get her in. 

Gaoler. Up to the top, boy ! 

Brother. Where 's the pilot ? 

1 Friend. Here. 
Daughter. What kenn'st thou ? 

2 Friend. A fair wood. 141 
Daughter. Bear for it, master ; tack about ! 

^ings] W]ie7i Cynthia with her borrowed light, etc. 

\Exeunt 



TWO NOBLE KINSMEN — 9 



ijo The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act iv 

Scene II. Athens, A Room in the Palace 

Enter Emilia, with two pictures 

Emilia, Yet I may bind those wounds up that must 
open 
And bleed to death for my sake else. I '11 choose, 
And end their strife ; two such young handsome men 
Shall never fall for me. Their weeping mothers. 
Following the dead-cold ashes of their sons, 
Shall never curse my cruelty. Good heaven, 
What a sweet face has Arcite ! If wise Nature, 
With all her best endowments, all those beauties 
She sows into the births of noble bodies. 
Were here a mortal woman, and had in her lo 

The coy denials of young maids, yet doubtless 
She would run mad for this man. What an eye, 
Of what a fiery sparkle and quick sweetness, 
Has this young prince ! here Love himself sits smiling ; 
Just such another wanton Ganymede 
Set Jove afire with, and enforced the god 
Snatch up the goodly boy and set him by him, 
A shining constellation. What a brow, 
Of what a spacious majesty, he carries, 
Arch'd like the great-eyed Juno's, but far sweeter, 20 
Smoother than Pelops' shoulder ! Fame and Honour, 
Methinks, from hence, as from a promontory 
Pointed in heaven, should clap their wings, and sing 
To all the under-world the loves and fights 
Of gods and such men near 'em. Palamon 



Scene II] The Two Noble Kinsmen 131 

Is but his foil ; to him, a mere dull shadow. 

He 's swarth and meagre, of an eye as heavy 

As if he had lost his mother ; a still temper, 

No stirring in him, no alacrity ; 

Of all this sprightly sharpness, not a smile. — 30 

Yet these that we count errors may become him ; 

Narcissus was a sad boy, but a heavenly. 

O, who can find the bent of woman's fancy? 

I am a fool, my reason is lost in me ; 

I have no choice, and I have lied so lewdly 

That women ought to beat me. — On my knees 

I ask thy pardon, Palamon ! Thou art alone. 

And only beautiful ; and these the eyes. 

These the bright lamps of beauty, that command 

And threaten Love, and what young maid dare cross 'em? 

What a bold gravity, and yet inviting, 41 

Has this brown manly face ! O Love, this only 

From this hour is complexion ! — Lie there, Arcite 

Thou art a changeling to him, a mere gipsy. 

And this the noble body. — I am sotted. 

Utterly lost ! my virgin's faith has fled me ! 

For if my brother but e'en now had ask'd me 

Whether I lov'd, I had run mad for Arcite ; 

Now if my sister, more for Palamon. — 

Stand both together! — Now come, ask me, brother; — 

Alas, I know not ! — Ask me now, sweet sister ; — 51 

I may go look ! — What a mere child is fancy. 

That, having two fair gawds of equal sweetness, . 

Cannot distinguish, but must cry for both I — 



132 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act IV 

Enter a Gentleman 
How now, sir ? 

Gentleman. From the noble duke your brother, 
Madam, I bring you news : the knights are come ! 

Emilia. To end the quarrel ? 

Gentle?nan. Yes. 

Emilia. Would I might end first ! — 

What sins have I committed, chaste Diana, 
That my unspotted youth must now be soiPd 
With blood of princes ? and my chastity 60 

Be made the altar, where the lives of lovers — 
Two greater and two better never yet 
Made mothers joy — must be the sacrifice 
To my unhappy beauty ? 

E7iter Theseus, Hippolyta, Pirithous, and 
Attendants 

Theseus. Bring 'em in 

Quickly, by any means ! I long to see 'em. — 
Your two contending lovers are returned. 
And with them their fair knights ; now, my fair sister. 
You must love one of them. 

Emilia. I had rather both, 

So neither for my sake should fall untimely. 

Theseus. Who saw 'em ? 

Pirithous. I a while. 

Gentleman. And I. 70 

Enter Messenger 

Theseus. From whence come you, sir? 



Scene II] The Two Noble Kinsmen 133 

Messenger, From the knights. 

Theseus, Pray speak, 

You that have seen them, what they are. 

Messenger. I will, sir, 

And truly what I think. Six braver spirits 
Than these they have brought — if we judge by the 

outside — 
I never saw nor read of. He that stands 
In the first place with Arcite, by his seeming 
Should be a stout man, by his face a prince, — 
His very looks so say him ; his complexion 
Nearer a brown than black; stern, and yet noble, 
Which shows him hardy, fearless, proud of dangers ; 
The circles of his eyes show fire within him, 81 

And as a heated lion, so he looks ; 
His hair hangs long behind him, black and shining 
Like ravens' wings ; his shoulders broad and strong ; 
Arm'd long and round : and on his thigh a sword 
Hung by a curious baldrick, when he frowns 
To seal his will with ; better, o' my conscience, 
Was never soldier's friend. 

Theseus. Thou hast well describ'd him. 

Pirithous. Yet a great deal short, 

Methinks, of him that 's first with Palamon. 90 

Theseus. Pray speak him, friend. 

Pirithous. I guess he is a prince too, 

And, if it may be, greater ; for his show 
Has all the ornament of honour in 't. 
He 's somewhat bigger than the knight he spoke of, 



134 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act iv 

But of a face far sweeter ; his complexion 

Is, as a ripe grape, ruddy ; he has felt, 

Without doubt, what he fights for, and so apter 

To make this cause his own ; in 's face appears 

All the fair hopes of what he undertakes ; 

And when he 's angry, then a settled valour, loo 

Not tainted with extremes, runs through his body, 

And guides his arm to brave things ; fear he cannot, 

He shows no such soft temper. His head 's yellow, 

Hard-hair'd, and curl'd, thick twin'd, like ivy-tods. 

Not to undo with thunder ; in his face 

The livery of the warlike maid appears. 

Pure red and white, for yet no beard has blest him ; 

And in his rolling eyes sits Victory, 

As if she ever meant to crown his valour ; 

His nose stands high, a character of honour ; no 

His red lips, after fights, are fit for ladies. — 

Emilia. Must these men die too ? 

Pirithous, When he speaks, his tongue 

Sounds like a trumpet ; all his lineaments 
Are as a man would wish 'em, strong and clean ; 
He wears a well-steel'd axe, the staff of gold ; 
His age some five-and-twenty. 

Messenger. There 's another, 

A little man, but of a tough soul, seeming 
As great as any ; fairer promises 
In such a body yet I never look'd on. 119 

Pirithous. O, he that 's freckled-fac'd ? 

Messenger. The same, my lord ; 



i 



Scene II] The Two Noble Kinsmen 135 

Are they not sweet ones ? 

Pirithous, Yes, they 're well. 

Messenger, Methinks, 

Being so few and well dispos'd, they show 
Great and fine art in nature. He 's white-hair'd, 
Not wanton-white, but such a manly colour 
Next to an auburn ; tough, and nimble-set. 
Which shews an active soul ; his arms are brawny, 
Lin'd with strong sinews ; to the shoulder-piece 
Gently they swell, like women new-conceiv'd, 
Which speaks him prone to labour, never fainting 
Under the weight of arms ; stout-hearted, still, 130 

But, when he stirs, a tiger ; he 's grey-eyed. 
Which yields compassion where he conquers ; sharp 
To spy advantages, and where he finds 'em 
He 's swift to make 'em his ; he does no wrongs, 
Nor takes none ; he 's round-fac'd, and when he smiles 
He shows a lover, when he frowns a soldier. 
About his head he wears the winner's oak. 
And in it stuck the favour of his lady ; 
His age, some six-and-thirty. In his hand 
He bears a charging-staff emboss'd with silver. 140 

Theseus. Are they all thus ? 

Pirithous. They 're all the sons of honour. 

Theseus. Now, as I have a soul, I long to see 'em ! — 
Lady, you shall see men fight now. 

Hippolyta. I wish it. 

But not the cause, my lord. They would shew 
Bravely about the titles of two kingdoms ; 



136 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act iv 

'T is pity love should be so tyrannous. — 

O, my soft-hearted sister, what think you ? 

Weep not, till they weep blood, wench ! it must be. 

Theseus, You have steel'd 'em with your beauty. — 
Honoured friend. 
To you I give the field ; pray order it 150 

Fitting the persons that must use it ! 

Pirithous. Yes, sir. 

Theseus, Come, I '11 go visit 'em ; I cannot stay — 
Their fame has fir'd me so — till they appear. 
Good friend, be royal ! 

Pirithous, There shall want no bravery. 

Emilia. Poor wrench, go weep ; for whosoever wins 
Loses a noble cousin for thy sins. \_Exeunt, 

Scene III. Athe^is, A Room in the Prison 
Enter Gaoler, Wooer, and Doctor 

Doctor, Her distraction is more at some time of 
the moon than at other some, is it not ? 

Gaoler, She is continually in a harmless distemper, 
sleeps little, altogether without appetite, save often 
drinking; dreaming of another w^orld, and a better; 
and what broken piece of matter soe'er she 's about, 
the name Palamon lards it ; that she farces every 
business withal, fits it to every question. — Look, 
where she comes ! you shall perceive her behaviour. 

Enter Daughter 
Daughter, I have forgot it quite ; the burden on 't 



Scene III] The Two Noble Kinsmen 137 

was ' down-adown-a ;' and penned by no worse man 
than Geraldo, Emilia's schoolmaster. He 's as fan- 
tastical, too, as ever he may go upon 's legs ; for in 
the next world will Dido see Palamon, and then will 
she be out of love with ^neas. 15 

Doctor. What stuff 's here ! poor soul ! 

Gaoler, Even thus all day long. 

Daughter, Now for this charm, that I told you of : 
you must bring a piece of silver on the tip of your 
tongue, or no ferry ; then if it be your chance to 
come where the blessed spirits are — there 's a 
sight now! — we maids that have our livers perished, 
cracked to pieces with love, we shall come there, and 
do nothing all day long but pick flowers with Pros- 
erpine ; then I will make Palamon a nosegay ; then 
let him — mark me — then — 26 

Doctor. How prettily she 's amiss ! note her a 
little further. 

Daughter. Faith, I '11 tell you ; sometime we go to 
barley-break, we of the blessed. Alas, 't is a sore life 
they have i' the other place, such burning, hissing, 
howling, chattering, cursing ! O, they have shrewd 
measure ! Take heed : if one be mad, or hang or 
drown themselves, thither they go, Jupiter bless us ! 
and there shall they be put in a cauldron of lead 
and usurers' grease, amongst a whole million of cut- 
purses, and there boil like a gammon of bacon that 
will never be enough. t^z 

Doctor, How she continues this fancy ! 'T is 



138 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act IV 

not an engraffed madness, but a most thick and pro- 
found melancholy. 41 

Daughter, To hear there a proud lady and a proud 
city-wife howl together ! I were a beast an I 'd call 
it good sport ! 
[Sings] I will be true^ 7ny stars ^ my/ate^ etc. 

\_Exit Daughter, 

Gaoler, What think you of her, sir ? 

Doctor, I think she has a perturbed mind, which 
I cannot minister to. 

Gaoler, Alas, w^hat then ? 

Doctor, Understand you she ever affected any 
man ere she beheld Palamon? 51 

Gaoler. I was once, sir, in great hope she had 
fixed her liking on this gentleman, my friend. 

Wooer, I did think so too, and would account I 
had a great pen'worth on 't, to give half my state, 
that both she and I at this present stood unfeignedly 
on the same terms. 

Doctor, That intemperate surfeit of her eye hath 
distempered the other senses ; they may return, and 
settle again to execute their preordained faculties, but 60 
they are now in a most extravagant vagary. This you 
must do : confine her to a place where the light may 
rather seem to steal in than be permitted. Take upon 
you, young sir, her friend, the name of Palamon ; say 
you come to eat with her, and to commune of love ; 
this wall catch her attention, for this her mind beats 
upon ; other objects, that are inserted 'tween her 



Scene III] The Two Noble Kinsmen 139 

mind and eye, become the pranks and friskings of her 
madness. Sing to her such green songs of love as she 
says Palamon hath sung in prison ; come to her, stuck 70 
in as sweet flowers as the season is mistress of, and 
thereto make an addition of some other compounded 
odours w^hich are grateful to the sense. All this shall 
become Palamon, for Palamon can sing, and Palamon 
is sweet, and every good thing. Desire to eat with 
her, carve her, drink to her, and still among inter- 
mingle your petition of grace and acceptance into her 
favour ; learn w^hat maids have been her companions 
and play-feres, and let them repair to her with Pala- 
mon in their mouths, and appear with tokens, as if 80 
they suggested for him. It is a falsehood she is in, 
which is with falsehoods to be combated. This may 
bring her to eat, to sleep, and reduce what is now out 
of square in her into their former law and regiment. 
I have seen it approved, how many times I know not ; 
but to make the number more, I have great hope in 
this. I will, between the passages of this project, 
come in with my appliance. Let us put it in execu- 
tion, and hasten the success, which, doubt not, will 
bring forth comfort. 90 

\_Exe2mt. 




Death of Arcite 



ACT V 

Scene I. Athens, An Open Space befoir the Temples 
of Ma7^s^ Venus ^ and Diana 

Enter Theseus, Pirithous, Hippolyta, and attendants 

Theseus, Now let 'em enter and before the gods 
Tender their holy prayers ! Let the temples 
Burn bright with sacred fires, and the altars 
In hallow'd clouds commend their swelling incense 
To those above us ! Let no due be wanting ! 

\Flourish of cornets. 
They have a noble work in hand will honour 
The very powers that love 'em. 

140 



Scene I] The Two Noble Kinsmen 14 1 

Enter Palamon, Arcite, and their Knights 

Pirithous, Sir, they enter. 

Theseus. You valiant and strong-hearted enemies, 
You royal germane foes, that this day come 
To blow the nearness out that flames between ye, 10 
Lay by your anger for an hour, and dove-like 
Before the holy altars of your helpers. 
The all-fear'd gods, bow down your stubborn bodies. 
Your ire is more than mortal ; so your help be ! 
And as the gods regard ye, fight with justice ! 
I '11 leave you to your prayers, and betwixt ye 
I part my wishes. 

Pirithous, Honour crown the worthiest ! 

\Exeunt Theseus and train, 

Palamon. The glass is running now that cannot finish 
Till one of us expire : think you but thus, — 
That, were there aught in me which strove to shew 20 
Mine enemy in this business, were 't one eye 
Against another, arm oppress'd by arm, 
I would destroy the offender ; coz, I would. 
Thou parcel of myself ; then from this gather 
How I should tender you. 

Arcite, I am in labour 

To push your name, your ancient love, our kindred. 
Out of my memory, and i' the selfsame place 
To seat something I would confound ; so hoist we 
The sails that must these vessels port even where 
The heavenly Limiter pleases ! 



142 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act v 

Palamon, You speak well. 30 

Before I turn, let me embrace thee, cousin. 

\They embrace. 
This I shall never do again. 

Arcite, One farewell ! 

Palamon, Why, let it be so ; farewell, coz ! 

Arcite, Farewell, sir ! — 

\Exeunt Palamon and his Kiiights, 
Knights, kinsmen, lovers, yea, my sacrifices. 
True worshippers of Mars, whose spirit in you 
Expels the seeds of fear and the apprehension 
Which still is father of it, go with me 
Before the god of our profession. There 
Require of him the hearts of lions and 
The breath of tigers, yea, the fierceness too ; 40 

Yea, the speed also, — to go on, I mean. 
Else wish we to be snails. You know my prize 
Must be dragg'd out of blood ; force and great feat 
Must put my garland on, where she will stick 
The queen of flowers. Our intercession, then. 
Must be to him that makes the camp a cestron 
Brimm'd with the blood of men ; give me your aid 
And bend your spirits towards him. — 

\They advance to the altar of Mars ^ and fall on 
their faces ; the?i kneel. 
Thou mighty one, that with thy power hast turn'd 
Green Neptune into purple ; whose approach 50 

Comets prewarn ; whose havoc in vast field 
Unearthed skulls proclaim ; whose breath blows down 



Scene I] The Two Noble Kinsmen 143 

The teeming Ceres' foison ; who dost pluck 

With hand armipotent from forth blue clouds 

The mason'd turrets ; that both mak'st and break'st 

The stony girths of cities ; me, thy pupil, 

Young'st follower of thy drum, instruct this day 

With military skill, that to thy laud 

I may advance my streamer and by thee 

Be styl'd the lord o' the day. Give me, great Mars, 60 

Some token of thy pleasure. — 

\_Here they fall on their faces as before^ and there 
is heard clanging of armour, with a short thun- 
der, as the burst of a battle, whereupon they all 
rise, and bow to the altar. 
O great corrector of enormous times. 
Shaker of o'er-rank states, thou grand decider 
Of dusty and old titles, that heaPst with blood 
The earth when it is sick and cur'st the world 
O' the plurisy of people, I do take 
Thy signs auspiciously, and in thy name 
To my design march boldly ! — Let us go. [^Exeunt, 

Re-enter Palamon and his Knights 

Palamon, Our stars must glister with new fires, or be 
To-day extinct ; our argument is love, 70 

Which if the goddess of it grant, she gives 
Victory too. Then blend your spirits with mine, 
You whose free nobleness do make my cause 
Your personal hazard. To the goddess Venus 
Commend we our proceeding, and implore 



144 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act V 

Her power unto our party 1 — 

\Here they advance to the altar of Venus ^ and fall 
on theh^ faces ; the?t kneel. 
Hail, sovereign queen of secrets ! who hast power 
To call the fiercest tyrant from his rage 
And weep unto a girl ; that hast the might 
Even with an eye-glance to choke Mars's drum So 

And turn the alarm to whispers ; that canst make 
A cripple flourish with his crutch and cure him 
Before Apollo ; that mayst force the king 
To be his subject's vassal, and induce 
Stale gravity to dance ; the polled bachelor, 
Whose youth, like wanton boys through bonfires, 
Have skipt thy flame, at seventy thou canst catch, 
And make him, to the scorn of his hoarse throat, 
Abuse young lays of love. What godlike power 
Hast thou not power upon ? To Phoebus thou 90 

Add'st flames, hotter than his ; the heavenly fires 
Did scorch his mortal son, thine him ; the huntress. 
All moist and cold, some say, began to throw 
Her bow away and sigh. Take to thy grace 
Me thy vow'd soldier, who do bear thy yoke 
As 't were a wreath of roses, yet is heavier 
Than lead itself, stings more than nettles. I 
Have never been foul-mouth 'd against thy law, 
Ne'er reveal'd secret, for I knew none, — would not. 
Had I kenn'd all that were ; I never practis'd 100 

Upon man's wife, nor would the libels read 
Of liberal wits ; I never at great feasts 



Scene I] The Two Noble Kinsmen 145 

Sought to betray a beauty, but have blush'd 

At simpering sirs that did ; I have been harsh 

To large confessors, and have hotly ask'd them 

If they had mothers. I had one, a woman. 

And women 't were they wrong'd. I knew a man 

Of eighty winters — this I told them — who 

A lass of fourteen brided. 'T was thy power 

To put life into dust ; the aged cramp no 

Had screw'd his square foot round, 

The gout had knit his fingers into knots, 

Torturing convulsions from his globy eyes 

Had almost drawn their spheres, that what was Hfe 

In him seem'd torture. This anatomy 

Had by his young fair fere a boy, and I 

Believ'd it was his, for she swore it was. 

And who would not believe her ? Brief, I am 

To those that prate, and have done, no companion ; 

To those that boast, and have not, a defter ; 120 

To those that would, and cannot, a rejoicer ; 

Yea, him I do not love that tells close offices 

The foulest way, nor names concealments in 

The boldest language ; such a one I am, 

And vow that lover never yet made sigh 

Truer than I. O, then, most soft sweet goddess, 

Give me the victory of this question, which 

Is true love's merit, and bless me with a sign 

Of thy great pleasure ! — 

\_Here music is heard, doves are seen to fltitter ; they 
fall again upon their faces, then 07i their kfiees, 

TWO NOBLE KINSMEN — lO 



146 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act v 

O thou that from eleven to ninety reign 'st 130 

In mortal bosoms, whose chase is this world 

And we in herds thy game, I give thee thanks 

For this fair token, which, being laid unto 

Mine innocent true heart, arms in assurance 

My body to this business ! — Let us rise 

And bow before the goddess ; time comes on. 

\They bow, then exeunt 

Still music of records. Enter Emilia in white, her hair 
about her shoulders, and wearing a wheaten wreath; 
one in white holding up her train^ her hair stuck with 
flowers ; one before her carrying a silver hind, i?t which 
is conveyed incense and sweet odours, which being set 
upon the altar of Diana, her Maids standing aloof, she 
sets fire to it; then they curtsy and hieel, 

Emilia. O sacred, shadowy, cold, and constant 
queen, 
Abandoner of revels, mute, contemplative. 
Sweet, solitary, white as chaste, and pure 
As wind-fann'd snow, who to thy female knights 140 

Allow'st no more blood than will make a blush, 
Which is their order's robe, I here, thy priest, 
Am humbled fore thine altar ! O, vouchsafe, 
With that thy rare green eye — which never yet 
Beheld thing maculate — look on thy virgin 1 
And, sacred silver mistress, lend thine ear — 
Which ne'er heard scurril term, into whose port 
Ne'er enter'd wanton sound — to my petition, 



Scene I] The Two Noble Kinsmen 147 

Seasoned with holy fear ! This is my last 

Of vestal office ; I 'm bride-habited, 150 

But maiden-hearted ; a husband I have pointed, 

But do not know him ; out of two I should 

Choose one and pray for his success, but I 

Am guiltless of election ; of mine eyes. 

Were I to lose one — they are equal precious — 

I could doom neither; that which perish'd should 

Go to 't unsentenc'd. Therefore, most modest queen, 

He, of the two pretenders that best loves me 

And has the truest title in 't, let him 

Take off my wheaten garland, or else grant 160 

The file and quality I hold I may 

Continue in thy band. — 

\_Ifere the hind vanishes under the altar, and in the 
place ascends a rose-tree, having o?ie rose upon it. 
See what our general of ebbs and flows 
Out from the bowels of her holy altar 
With sacred act advances ! But one rose ! 
If well inspired, this battle shall confound 
Both these brave knights, and I, a virgin flower, 
Must grow alone, unpluck'd. — 

\Here is heard a sudden twang of instru- 
ments, and the rose falls from the tree, 
which vanishes U7ider the altar. 
The flower is fallen, the tree descends! — O mis- 
tress, 
Thou here dischargest me ! I shall be gathered, 170 
I think so, but I know not thine own will ; 



148 The Two Noble Kinsmen [ActV 

Unclasp thy mystery ! — I hope she 's pleas'd ; 

Her signs were gracious. \They curtsy^ and exeunt. 



Scene II. A Room in the Prison 

Enter Doctor, Gaoler, and Wooer in the habit of 
Palamon 

Doctor, Has this advice I told you done any good 
upon her? 

Wooer. O, very much : the maids that kept her com- 
pany 
Have half persuaded her that I am Palamon ; 
Within this half-hour she came smiling to me. 
And ask'd me what I 'd eat and when I 'd kiss her. 
I told her presently, and kiss'd her twice. 

Doctor. 'T was well done ; twenty times had been far 
better. 
For there the cure lies mainly. 

Wooer. Then she told me 

She would watch with me to-night, for well she knew 
What hour my fit would take me. 

Doctor. Let her do so. 10 

Wooer. She would have me sing. 

Doctor. You did so ? 

Wooer. No. 

Doctor, 'T was very ill done, then ; 
You should observe her every way. 

Wooer, Alas 1 

I have no voice, sir, to confirm her that way. 



Scene II] The Two Noble Kinsmen 149 

Doctor. That 's all one if ye make a noise ; 
If she entreat again, do any thing ; 
Lie with her, if she ask you. 

Gaoler. Ho there, doctor ! 

Doctor. Yes, in the way of cure. 

Gaoler. But first, by your leave, 

I' the way of honesty. 

Doctor. That 's but a niceness ; 

Ne'er cast your child away for honesty. 20 

Cure her first this way ; then, if she '11 be honest, 
She has the path before her. 

Gaoler. Thank you, doctor. 

Doctor. Pray, bring her in. 
And let 's see how she is. 

Gaoler, I will, and tell her 

Her Palamon stays for her ; but, doctor, 
Methinks you are i' the wrong still. \Exit. 

Doctor. Go, go ; 

You fathers are fine fools ! her honesty ! 
An we should give her physic till we find that — 

Wooer. Why, do you think she is not honest, sir t 

Doctor. How old is she ? 

Wooer. She 's eighteen. 

Doctor. She may be ; 

But that 's all one, 't is nothing to our purpose. 31 

Whate'er her father says, if you perceive 
Her mood inclining that way that I spoke of, 
Videlicet, the way of flesh — you have me ? 

Wooer. Yes, very well, sir. 



150 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act V 

Enter Gaoler, Daughter, a7id Maid 

Gaoler. Come ; your love Palamon stays for you, 
child, 
And has done this long hour, to visit you. 

Daughter. I thank him for his gentle patience ; 
He 's a kind gentleman, and I am much bound to 

him. 
Did you ne'er see the horse he gave me ; 

Gaoler. Yes. 40 

Daughter, How do you like him ? 

Gaoler, He 's a very fair one. 

Daughter. You never saw him dance ? 

Gaoler. No. 

Daughter. I have often : 

He dances very finely, very comely ; 
And, for a jig, come cut and long tail to him ! 
He turns ye like a top. 

Gaoler, That 's fine indeed. 

Daughter, He '11 dance the morris twenty miles an 
hour, — 
And that will founder the best hobby-horse, 
If I have any skill, in all the parish, — 
And gallops to the tune of ' Light o' Love.' 
What think you of this horse ? 

Gaoler. Having these virtues, 

I think he might be brought to play at tennis. 51 

Daughter. Alas, that 's nothing ! 

Gaoler. Can he write and read too ? 



Scene II] The Two Noble Kinsmen 151 

Daughter, A very fair hand, and cast himself the 
accounts 
Of all his hay and provender ; that hostler 
Must rise betime that cozens him. You know 
The chestnut mare the duke has ? 

Gaoler, Very well. 

Daughter. She is horribly in love with him, poor 
beast ; 
But he like his master, coy and scornful. 

Gaoler, What dowry has she ? 

Daughter, Some two hundred bottles. 

And twenty strike of oats, but he '11 ne'er have her ; 60 
He lisps in 's neighing, able to entice 
A miller's mare ; he '11 be the death of her. 

Doctor, What stuff she utters ! 

Gaoler, Make curtsy ; here your lover comes. 

Wooer. Pretty soul. 

How do ye ? That 's a fine maid ! there 's a curtsy ! 

Daughter, Yours to command, i' the way of honesty. 
How far is 't now to the end o' the world, my masters ? 

Doctor, Why, a day's journey, wench. 

Daughter. Will you go with me ? 

Wooer. What shall we do there, wench ? 

Daughter, Why, play at stool-ball. 

What is there else to do ? 

Wooer, I am content, 70 

If we shall keep our wedding there. 

Daughter, 'T is true ; 

For there, I will assure you, we shall find 



152 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act V 

Some blind priest for the purpose that will venture 
To marry us, for here they are nice and foolish ; 
Besides, my father must be hang'd to-morrow, 
And that would be a blot i' the business. 
Are not you Palamon ? 

Wooer, Do not you know me ? 

Daughter, Yes, but you care not for me ; I have 
nothing 
But this poor petticoat and two coarse smocks. 79 

Wooer, That 's all one ; I will have you. 

Daughter, Will you surely ? 

Wooer, Yes, by this fair hand, will I. 

Daughter, We '11 to bed then. 

Wooer, Even when you will. \Kisses her. 

Daughter, O, sir, you 'd fain be nibbling ! 

Wooer, Why do you rub my kiss off ? 

Daughter, 'T is a sweet one. 

And will perfume me finely against the wedding. — 
Is not this your cousin Arcite ? 

Doctor, Yes, sweetheart ; 

And I am glad my cousin Palamon 
Has made so fair a choice. 

Daughter, Do you think he '11 have me ? 

Doctor, Yes, without doubt. 

Daughter. Do you think so too ? 

Gaoler, Yes. 

Daughter, We shall have many children. — Lord, 
how y' are grown ! 
My Palamon I hope will grow too, finely, 90 



Scene II] The Two Noble Kinsmen 153 

Now he 's at liberty ; alas, poor chicken ! 

He was kept down with hard meat and ill lodging, 

But I will kiss him up again. 

Enter a Messenger 

Messenger, What do you here ? you '11 lose the noblest 
sight 
That e'er was seen. 

Gaoler, Are they i' the field ? 

Messenger, They are ; 

You bear a charge there too. 

Gaoler, I '11 away straight. — 

I must even leave you here. 

Doctor, Nay, we '11 go with you ; 

I will not lose the sight. 

Gaoler, How did you like her ? 

Doctor, I '11 warrant you, within these three or four 
days 
I '11 make her right again. — You must not from her, 
But still preserve her in this way. 

Wooer, I will. loi 

Doctor, Let 's get her in. 

Wooer, Come, sweet, we '11 go to 

dinner ; 
And then w^e '11 play at cards. \Exeiint, 



1 54 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act v 



Scene III. A part of the Forest^ near the Place of 

Cofnbat 

Enter Theseus, Hippolyta, Emilia, Pirithous, ajid 
Attendants 

E77iiUa, I '11 no step further. 

Pirithous, Will you lose this sight ? 

Emilia. I had rather see a wren hawk at a fly 
Than this decision. Every blow that falls 
Threats a brave life ; each stroke laments 
The place whereon it falls, and sounds more like 
A bell than blade. I will stay here, — 
It is enough my hearing shall be punish 'd 
With what shall happen, 'gainst the which there is 
No deafing but to hear, — not taint mine eye 
With dread sights it may shun. 

Pirithous. Sir, my good lord, 

Your sister will no further. 

Theseus. O, she must ! ii 

She shall see deeds of honour in their kind, 
Which sometime show well, pencill'd ; nature now 
Shall make and act the story, the belief 
Both seal'd with eye and ear. You must be present ; 
You are the victor's meed, the price and garland 
To crown the question's title. 

Emilia. Pardon me ; 

If I were there, I 'd wink. 

Theseus. You must be there ; 



Scene III] The Two Noble Kinsmen 155 

This trial is as 't were i' the night, and you 
The only star to shine. 

Emilia. I am extinct ; 20 

There is but envy in that light which shews 
The one the other. Darkness, which ever was 
The dam of Horror, who does stand accurs'd 
Of many mortal millions, may even now, 
By casting her black mantle over both, 
That neither could find other, get herself 
Some part of a good name, and many a murther 
Set off whereto she 's guilty. 

Hippolyta. You must go. 

Emilia, In faith, I will not. 

Theseus. Why, the knights must kindle 

Their valour at your eye ; know, of this war 30 

You are the treasure, and must needs be by 
To give the service pay. 

Emilia, Sir, pardon me ; 

The title of a kingdom may be tried 
Out of itself. 

Theseus. Well, well, then, at your pleasure ! 
Those that remain with you could wish their office 
To any of their enemies. 

Hippolyta. Farewell, sister ! 

I am like to know your husband fore yourself, 
By some small start of time ; he whom the gods 
Do of the two know best, I pray them he 
Be made your lot ! 40 

\_Exeunt all except Emilia and so7?ie of the Attendants. 



156 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act V 

Emilia. Arcite is gently visag'd, yet his eye 
Is like an engine bent, or a sharp weapon 
In a soft sheath ; mercy and manly courage 
Are bedfellows in his visage. Palamon 
Has a most menacing aspect ; his brow 
Is grav'd and seems to hwry what it frowns on. 
Yet sometimes 't is not so, but alters to 
The quality of his thoughts ; long time his eye 
Will dwell upon his object. Melancholy 
Becomes him nobly ; so does Arcite's mirth. 50 

But Palamon's sadness is a kind of mirth. 
So mingled as if mirth did make him sad 
And sadness merry ; those darker humours that 
Stick misbecomingly on others, on him 
Live in fair dwelling. — 

[ Cornets. Trumpets sound as to a charge. 
Hark, how yon spurs to spirit do incite 
The princes to their proof ! Arcite may win me ; 
And yet may Palamon wound Arcite, to 
The spoiling of his figure. O, what pity 
Enough for such a chance ! If I were by, 60 

I might do hurt ; for they w^ould glance their eyes 
Toward my seat, and in that motion might 
Omit a ward, or forfeit an offence. 
Which crav'd that very time. It is much better 

\_C0r71ets, Cry within^ * A Palamon ! ' 
I am not there ; O, better never born 
Than minister to such harm ! — What is the chance ? 

Servant. The cry 's ' A Palamon.' 



Scene III] The Two Noble Kinsmen 157 

Emilia. Then he has won. 'T was ever likely ; 
He look'd all grace and success, and he is 
Doubtless the prim'st of men. I prithee run, 70 

And tell me how it goes. 

\_Shout, and cornets ; cry^ ^ A Palamon ! ' 
Servant, Still ' Palamon.' 

Emilia, Run and inquire. — \_Exit Servant?^ Poor 
servant, thou hast lost ! 
Upon my right side still I wore thy picture, 
Palamon 's on the left. Why so, I know not ; 
I had no end in 't else ; chance would have it so. 

[^Another cry and shout within^ and cornets. 
On the sinister side the heart lies ; Palamon 
Had the best-boding chance. This burst of clamour 
Is, sure, the end o' the combat. 

Re-enter Servant 

Servant, They said that Palamon had Arcite's body 
Within an inch o' the pyramid, that the cry 80 

Was general ^ A Palamon ; ' but anon. 
The assistants made a brave redemption, and 
The two bold tilters at this instant are 
Hand to hand at it. 

Emilia, Were they metamorphos'd 

Both into one — O, why, there were no woman 
Worth so compos'd a man ! Their single share, 
Their nobleness peculiar to them, gives 
The prejudice of disparity, value's shortness, 

\_Cornets, Cry within, ^ Arcite, Arcite ! ' 



158 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act V 

To any lady breathing. — More exulting ! 
' Palamon ' still ? 

Ser-oaiit, Nay, now the sound is ' Arcite.' 90 

Emilia. I prithee lay attention to the cry ; 

[ Cornets, A great shout a?id C7j^ * Arcite, victory ! ' 
Set both thine ears to the business. 

Serva7it, The cr^^ is 

^ Arcite, and victory ! ' Hark ! ' Arcite, victory ! ' 
The combat's consummation is proclaim'd 
By the wind-instruments. 

Emilia, Half-sights saw 

That Arcite was no babe ; God's lid, his richness 
And costliness of spirit look'd through him ! it could 
No more be hid in him than fire in flax, 
Than humble banks can go to law with waters 
That drift-winds force to raging. I did think 100 

Good Palamon would miscarry, yet I knew not 
Why I did think so ; our reasons are not prophets, 
When oft our fancies are. They 're coming off ; 
Alas, poor Palamon ! [Cornets. 

Enter Theseus, Hippolyta, Pirithous, Arcite as 
victor^ Attendants, etc. 

Theseus. Lo, where our sister is in expectation, 
Yet quaking and unsettled ! — Fairest Emily, 
The gods, by their divine arbitrement. 
Have given you this knight ; he 4s a good one 
As ever struck at head. — Give me your hands I 
Receive you her, you him ; be plighted with no 



Scene III] The Two Noble Kinsmen 159 

A love that grows as you decay ! 

Arcite. Emily, 

To buy you I have lost what 's dearest to me, 
Save what is bought ; and yet I purchase cheaply, 
As I do rate your value. 

Theseus, O, lov'd sister, 

He speaks now of as brave a knight as e'er 
Did spur a noble steed ; surely the gods 
Would have him die a bachelor, lest his race 
Should show i' the world too godlike ! His behaviour 
So charm 'd me that methought Alcides was 
To him a sow of lead ; if I could praise 120 

Each part of him to the all I 've spoke, your Arcite 
Did not lose by 't, for he that was thus good 
Encounter'd yet his better. I have heard 
Two emulous Philomels beat the ear o' the night 
With their contentious throats, now one the higher, 
Anon the other, then again the first. 
And by and by out-breasted, that the sense 
Could not be judge between 'em ; so it far'd 
Good space between these kinsmen, till heavens did 
Make hardly one the winner. — Wear the garland 130 
With joy that you have won 1 — For the subdued, 
Give them our present justice, since I know 
Their lives but pinch 'em ; let it here be done. 
The scene 's not for our seeing ; go w^e hence, 
Right joyful, with some sorrow ! — Arm your prize ; 
I know you will not lose her. — Hippolyta, 
I see one eye of yours conceives a tear, 



i6o The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act v 

The which it will deliver. [Flourish. 

Ef?iilia, Is this winning ? — 

all you heavenly powers, where is your mercy ? 

But that your wills have said it must be so, 140 

And charge me live to comfort this unfriended, 
This miserable prince, that cuts away 
A life more worthy from him than all women, 

1 should and w^ould die too. 
Hippolyta, Infinite pity 

That four such eyes should be so fix'd on one 
That two must needs be blind for 't ! 

Theseus, So it is. [Exeunt, 

Scene IV. The sa?ne Part of the Forest as in Act III, 
Scene VI 

Enter Palamon and his Knights pinioned^ Gaoler, 
Executioner, and Guard 

Palamon, There 's many a man alive that hath out- 
liv'd 
The love o' the people ; yea, i' the self-same state 
Stands many a father with his child. Some comfort 
We have by so considering ; we expire, 
And not without men's pity ; to live still 
Have their good wishes ; we prevent 
The loathsome misery of age, beguile 
The gout and rheum, that in lag hours attend 
For grey approachers ; we come towards the gods 
Young and unwapper'd, not halting under crimes 10 



Scene IV] The Two Noble Kinsmen i6i 

Many and stale ; that, sure, shall please the gods 
Sooner than such, to give us nectar with 'em, 
For we are more clear spirits. My dear kinsmen, 
Whose lives for this poor comfort are laid down, 
You 've sold 'em too-too cheap. 

1 Knight, What ending could be 
Of more content ? O'er us the victors have 
Fortune, whose title is as momentary 

As to us death is certain ; a grain of honour 
They not o'erweigh us. 

2 Knight. Let us bid farewell, 

And with our patience anger tottering Fortune, 20 

Who, at her certain 'st, reels. 

3 Knight, Come ; who begins ? 
Falamon, Even he that led you to this banquet shall 

Taste to you all. — Ah ha, my friend, my friend I 

Your gentle daughter gave me freedom once ; 

You '11 see 't done now for ever. Pray, how does she ? 

I heard she was not well ; her kind of ill 

Gave me some sorrow. 

Gaoler, Sir, she 's well restor'd 

And to be married shortly. 

Palamo?i, By my short life, 

I am most glad on 't ! 'T is the latest thing 
I shall be glad of ; prithee, tell her so. 30 

Commend me to her, and, to piece her portion. 
Tender her this. \^Gives a purse. 

1 Knight, Nay, let 's be offerers all. 

2 Knight. Is it a maid ? 

TWO NOBLE KINSMEN — II 



1 62 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act v 

Falamon, Verily, I think so ; 

A right good creature, more to me deserving 
Than I can quit or speak of. 

All Knights. Commend us to her. [^Give their purses. 

Gaoler. The gods requite you all, 

And make her thankful ! 

Falamon. Adieu ! and let my life be now as short 
As my leave-taking. [^Lays his head on the block. 

1 Knight, Lead, courageous cousin. 39 

2 Knight. We '11 follow cheerfully. 

\_A great noise within^ crying^ ' Run, save, hold ! ' 

Enter in haste a Messenger 
Messenger. Hold, hold ! O, hold, hold, hold ! 

Enter Pirithous iii haste 

Firithous. Hold, ho ! it is a cursed haste you made, 
If you have done so quickly. — Noble Palamon, 
The gods will shew their glory in a life 
That thou art yet to lead. 

Falamon. Can that be, when 

Venus I 've said is false ? How do things fare ? 

Firithous. Arise, great sir, and give the tidings ear 
That are most dearly sweet and bitter ! 

Falamon. What 

Hath wak'd us from our dream ? \Palamo7i rises, 

Firithous. List then ! Your cousin, 

Mounted upon a steed that Emily 

Did first bestow on him, — a black one, owing 50 

Not a hair-worth of white, which some will say 



Scene IV] The Two Noble Kinsmen 163 

Weakens his price, and many will not buy 
His goodness with this note ; which superstition 
Here finds allowance, — on this horse is i\rcite, 
Trotting the stones of Athens, which the calkins 
Did rather tell than trample ; for the horse 
Would make his length a mile if 't pleas 'd his rider 
To put pride in him. As he thus went counting 
The flinty pavement, dancing as 't were to the music 
His own hoofs made — for, as they say, from iron 6a 
Came m.usic's origin — what envious flint. 
Cold as old Saturn, and like him possess'd 
With fire malevolent, darted a spark. 
Or what fierce sulphur else, to this end made, 
I comment not ; the hot horse, hot as fire. 
Took toy at this and fell to what disorder 
His power could give his will, bounds, comes on end, 
Forgets school-doing, being therein trained 
And of kind manage ; pig-like he whines 
At the sharp rowel, which he frets at rather 70 

Than any jot obeys ; seeks all foul means 
Of boisterous and rough jadery to disseat 
His lord that kept it bravely. When nought serv'd, 
When neither curb would crack, girth break, nor differ- 
ing plunges 
Disroot his rider whence he grew, but that 
He kept him 'tween his legs, on his hind hoofs 
On end he stands. 

That Arcite's legs, being higher than his head, 
Seem'd with strange art to hang ; his victor's wreath 



164 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act v 

Even then fell off his head, and presently 80 

Backward the jade comes o'er, and his full poise 

Becomes the rider's load. Yet is he living, 

But such a vessel 't is that floats but for 

The surge that next approaches ; he much desires 

To have some speech with you. Lo, he appears ! 

Enter Theseus, Hippolyta, Emilia, and Arcite borne 
in a chair 

Palamon, O miserable end of our alliance ! 
The gods are mighty ! — Arcite, if thy heart, 
Thy worthy manly heart, be yet unbroken, 
Give me thy last w^ords ; I am Palamon, 
One that yet loves thee dying. 

Arcite, Take Emilia, 90 

And with her all the w^orld's joy. Reach thy hand ; 
Farewell ! I 've told my last hour. I w^as false. 
Yet never treacherous ; forgive me, cousin ! — 
One kiss from fair Emilia ! \^Kisses her.~\ — 'T is done. 
Take her. I die ! [^Dies. 

Palamon. Thy brave soul seek Elysium ! 

Eynilia, I '11 close thine eyes, prince ; blessed souls 
be wdth thee ! 
Thou art a right good man ; and while I live 
This day I give to tears. 

Palamon, And I to honour. 

Theseus, In this place first you fought, even very here 
I sunder'd you ; acknowledge to the gods 100 

Your thanks that you are living. 



Scene IV] The Two Noble Kinsmen 165 

His part is play'd, and, though it were too short, 
He did it well ; your day is lengthen'd, and 
The blissful dew of heaven does arrose you. 
The powerful Venus well hath grac'd her altar 
And given you your love ; our master Mars 
Has vouch'd his oracle, and to Arcite gave 
The grace of the contention. So the deities 
Have showed due justice. — Bear this hence. 

Palamon. O cousin, 

That we should things desire which do cost us no 

The loss of our desire ! that nought could buy 
Dear love but loss of dear love ! 

Theseus, Never fortune 

Did play a subtler game : the conquer'd triumphs, 
The victor has the loss ; yet in the passage 
The gods have been most equal. Palamon, 
Your kinsman hath confess'd the right o' the lady 
Did lie in you, for you first saw her and 
Even then proclaim 'd your fancy ; he restor'd her, 
As your stolen jewel, and desir'd your spirit 119 

To send him hence forgiven. The gods my justice 
Take from my hand, and they themselves become 
The executioners. Lead your lady off ; 
And call your lovers from the stage of death, 
Whom I adopt my friends. A day or two 
Let us look sadly and give grace unto 
The funeral of Arcite ; in whose end 
The visages of bridegrooms we '11 put on, 
And smile with Palamon, for whom an hour, 



1 66 The Two Noble Kinsmen [Act v 

But one hour since, I was as dearly sorry 

As glad of Arcite, and am now as glad 130 

As for him sorry. — O you heavenly charmers, 

What things you make of us ! For what we lack 

We laugh, for what we have are sorry, — still 

Are children in some kind. Let us be thankful 

For that which is, and with you leave dispute 

That are above our question. — Let 's go off, 

And bear us like the time. [Flourish. Exeunt. 

EPILOGUE 
I would now ask ye how ye like the play, 
But, as it is with school-boys, cannot say 
I am cruel-fearful. Pray, yet stay a while. 
And let me look upon ye. No man smile ? 
Then it goes hard, I see. — He that has 
Lov'd a young handsome wench, then, shew his face — 
'T is strange if none be here — and, if he will 
Against his conscience, let him hiss and kill 
Our market I 'T is in vain, I see, to stay ye ; 
Have at the worst can come, then ! Now, what say ye ? 
And yet mistake me not : I am not bold ; 
We Ve no such cause. — If the tale we have told — 
For 't is no other — any way content ye — 
For to that honest purpose it was meant ye — 
We have our end ; and ye shall have ere long, 
I dare say, many a better, to prolong 
Your old loves to us. We, and all our might. 
Rest at your service ; gentlemen, good night ! 

[Flourish, 



NOTES 




Grecian Horsemen 



NOTES 

Introduction 

The Metre of the Play. — It should be understood at the 
outset that inetre^ or the mechanism of verse, is something alto- 
gether distinct from the music of verse. The one is matter of rule, 
the other of taste and feeling. Music is not an absolute necessity 
of verse ; the metrical form is a necessity, being that which con- 
stitutes the verse. 

The plays of Shakespeare and his dramatic contemporaries (with 
the exception of rhymed passages, and of occasional songs and 
interludes) are all in unrhymed or blank verse ; and the normal 
form of this blank verse is illustrated by i. i. 43 of the present 
play : " He will not suffer us to burn their bones." 

This line, it will be seen, consists of ten syllables, with the even 
syllables (2d, 4th, 6th, 8th, and loth) accented, the odd syllables 
(ist, 3d, etc.) being unaccented. Theoretically, it is made up of 
^v^ feet of two syllables each, with the accent on the second sylla- 
ble. Such a foot is called an iaijibus (plural, iafftbiises, or the Latin 
iambi), and the form of verse is called iambic, 

169 



lyo Notes 



This fundamental law of the verse is subject to certain modifica- 
tions, the most important of which are as follows : — 

1. After the tenth syllable an unaccented syllable (or even two 
such syllables) may be added, forming what is sometimes called a 
female line; as in i. I. 27: "And as you wish yourself to thrive 
with fair ones." The rhythm is complete with the word fair, ones 
being an extra eleventh syllable. See also lines 56, 57, 60, 63, etc. 

2. The accent in any part of the verse may be shifted from an 
even to an odd syllable; as in i. i. 26: "Hear and respect me! 
For your mother's sake"; and 29: "Now for the love of him 
whom Jove hath mark'd." In both lines the accent is shifted from 
the second to the first syllable. This change occurs very rarely in 
the tenth syllable, and seldom in the fourth; and it is not allow- 
able in two successive accented syllables. 

3. An extra unaccented syllable may occur in any part of the 
line; as in i. i. 33 and 49. In both lines the is superfluous. In 
56 have is superfluous, I have being equivalent to I'^ve, 

4. Any unaccented syllable, occurring in an even place immedi- 
ately before or after an even syllable which is properly accented, is 
reckoned as accented for the purposes of the verse; as, for instance, 
in lines 25 and 31. In 25 the last syllable oi getitilit/s, and in 31 
the last syllable of vu'ginity and advocate, are metrically equivalent 
to accented syllables ; and so with the last syllable of trespasses in 
'^'^ and of loathsoj)ieness in 45. 

5. In many instances words must be lengthe7ied in order to fill 
out the rhythm : — 

(^) In a large class of words in which e or i is followed by an- 
other vowel, the e or i is made a separate syllable ; as ocean, opin- 
io7if soldier, patience, partial, marriage, etc. For instance, iv. I. 
1 1 (" His rash oath or the sweet compassion ") appears to have only 
nine syllables, but compassio7i is a quadrisyllable. This lengthen- 
ing occurs most frequently at the end of the line, but there are few 
instances of it in this play. 

(J)) Many monosyllables ending in r, re, rSy res, preceded by a 



Notes 171 



long vowel or diphthong, are often made dissyllables ; as fare^ fire 
(see on v. 1.3), dear, hair, hour (see on our, i. 2. 76), your, etc. 
If the word is repeated in a verse it is often both monosyllable and 
dissyllable ; as in M. of V, iii. 2. 20 : " And so, though yours, not 
yours. Prove it so," where ^\\\\ti yours (preferably the first) is a 
dissyllable, the other being a monosyllable. In y. C iii. i. 172: 
" As fire drives out fire, so pity, pity," the first yfr^ is a dissyllable. 

{c) Words containing / or r, preceded by another consonant, 
are often pronounced as if a vowel came betw^een or after the con- 
sonants ; as in ii. 2. 138: "For when the west wind courts her 
gently" [gentl(e)y] ; iv. i. iii : "To call the maids, and pay the 
minstrels" [minst(e)rels] ; iv. I. 135: "Lies longing for me ; for 
the tackling" [tackl(e)ing] ; T. of 5. ii. i. 158: "While she did 
call me rascal fiddler" [fiddl(e)er] ; AWs Well, iii. 5. 43: "If 
you will tarry, holy pilgrim" [pilg(e)rim] ; C. of E. v. i. 360: 
"These are the parents of these children" (childeren, the original 
form of the word) ; W. T. iv. 4. 76 : " Grace and remembrance 
[rememb(e)rance] be to you both ! " etc. 

{d) Monosyllabic exclamations {ay, O, yea, nay, hail, etc.) and 
monosyllables otherwise emphasized are similarly lengthened ; 
also certain longer words ; as co7nmandeme7it in M. of V. (iv. i. 
451) ; safety (trisyllable) in Ham. i. 3. 21 ; business (trisyllable, 
as originally pronounced) in iv. i. 4: "For I came home before 
the business" (so in/. C. iv. i. 22 and other passages) ; and other 
words mentioned in the notes to the plays in which they occur. 

6. Words are also contracted for metrical reasons, like plurals 
and possessives ending in a sibilant, as balance, horse (for horses 
and horse's^, princess, sense, viarriage (plural and possessive), 
image, etc. So wdth many adjectives in the superlative (like 
prim'^st in i. i. 161, strict'' st, sternest, kindest, secrefst, etc.), and 
certain other words. 

7. The accent of words is also varied in many instances for met- 
rical reasons. Thus we find both revenue and revenue in the first 
scene of M. N, D, (lines 6 and 158), cdnfine (noun) and confiiie^ 



172 Notes 



solemnize and sdlemnize^ cdmpelled (see on iii. i. 68) and compelled^ 
record (noun) and recdrd (see on ii. 2. 1 1 2), pur site and pursue, 
distinct and distinct, etc. 

These instances of variable accent must not be confounded with 
those in which words were uniformly accented differently in the 
time of Shakespeare ; like aspect (see on v. 3. 45), impdrtiine, 
sepulchre (verb), per sever (never persevere'), perseverance, rheu- 
matic, triumphing, advertised (see on iii. i. 58), etc. 

8. Alexandrines, or verses of twelve syllables, with six accents, 
occur here and there in the plays. They must not be confounded 
with female lines with two extra syllables (see on i above) or with 
other lines in which two extra unaccented syllables may occur. 

9. Incomplete verses, of one or more syllables, are scattered 
through the plays. See i. i. 28, 34, 37, 71, 96, etc. 

10. Doggerel measure is used in the very earliest comedies 
(/.. Z. Z. and C. of E. in particular) in the mouths of comic 
characters (and others to some extent in this play), but never any- 
where in plays written after 1598. 

11. Rhyme occurs frequently in the early plays, but diminishes 
with comparative regularity from that period until the latest. 
Thus, in Z. Z. Z. there are about 1 100 rhyming verses (more than 
one-third of the whole number), in M. N. D. about 900, in Rich. 
II. and A\ and J. about 500 each, w^hile in Cor, and A. and C. 
there are only about 40 each, in Temp, only two, and in JV. T, 
none at all, except in the chorus introducing act iv. In the present 
play, out of about 2400 ten-syllable lines, less than fifty are in 
rhyme. Songs, interludes, and other matter not in ten-syllable 
measure (or in doggerel) are not included in this enumeration. 

Alternate rhymes are found only in the plays written before 1599 
or 1600. In M, of V. there are only four lines at the end of iii. 2. 
In Much Ado and A. K. Z., we also find a few lines, but none at 
all in subsequent plays. 

Rhymed couplets, or " rhyme-tags," are often found at the end of 
scenes ; as in 3 of the 24 scenes of the present play. In Ham, 14 



Notes 173 

out of 20 scenes, and in Macb, 21 out of 28, have such "tags ; " 
but in the latest plays they are not so frequent. In Temp., for 
instance, there is but one, and in W, T. none. 

12. In this edition of Shakespeare, the final -ed of past tenses 
and participles i7t verse is printed -Vwhen the word is to be pro- 
nounced in the ordinary way ; as in distress' d, line 36, and feared, 
line 48, of the first scene. But when the metre requires that the 
-ed be made a separate syllable, the e is retained ; as in crowned, 
line 52, where the word is a dissyllable. The only variation from 
this rule is in verbs like cry, die, sue, etc., the -ed of which is very 
rarely, if ever, made a separate syllable. 

Shakespeare's Use of Verse and Prose in the Plays. — 
This is a subject to which the critics have given very little attention, 
but it is an interesting study. In this play we find scenes entirely 
in verse or in prose (except for a little doggerel), and others in 
which the two are mixed. In general, we may say that verse is 
used for what is distinctly poetical, and prose for what is not poeti- 
cal. The distinction, however, is not so clearly marked in the 
earlier as in the later plays. The second scene of M. of V., for 
instance, is in prose, because Portia and Nerissa are talking about 
the suitors in a familiar and playful way ; but in T. G. of V., 
where Julia and Lucetta are discussing the suitors of the former 
in much the same fashion, the scene is in verse. Dowden, com- 
menting on Rich. II., remarks : " Had Shakespeare written the 
play a few years later, we may be certain that the gardener and 
his servants (iii. 4) would not have uttered stately speeches in 
verse, but would have spoken homely prose, and that humour 
would have mingled with the pathos of the scene. The same re- 
mark may be made with reference to the subsequent scene (v. 5) 
in which his groom visits the dethroned king in the Tower." 
Comic characters and those in low life generally speak in prose in 
the later plays, as Dowden intimates, but in the very earliest ones 
doggerel verse is much used instead. See on 10 above. 

The change from prose to verse is well illustrated in the third 



174 Notes 

scene of M. of V. It begins with plain prosaic talk about a busi- 
ness matter ; but when Antonio enters, it rises at once to the higher 
level of poetry. The sight of Antonio reminds Shylock of his hatred 
of the Merchant, and the passion expresses itself in verse, the ver- 
nacular tongue of poetry. 

The reasons for the choice of prose or verse are not always so 
clear as in this instance. We are seldom puzzled to explain the 
prose, but not unfrequently we meet with verse where we might 
expect prose. As Professor Corson remarks (^Introdtution to Shake- 
speare, 1889), " Shakespeare adopted verse as the general tenor of 
his language, and therefore expressed much in verse that is within 
the capabilities of prose ; in other words, his verse constantly en- 
croaches upon the domain of prose, but his prose can never be said 
to encroach upon the domain of verse." If in rare instances we 
think we find exceptions to this latter statement, and prose actually 
seems to usurp the place of verse, I believe that careful study of the 
passage will prove the supposed exception to be apparent rather 
than real. 

Some Books for Teachers and Students. — A few out of the 
many books that might be commended to the teacher and the criti- 
cal student are the following : Halliwell-Phillipps's Outlines of the 
Life of Shakespeare (7th ed. 1887) ; Sidney Lee's Life of Shake- 
spear e (1898; for ordinary students the abridged ed. of 1899 is 
preferable) ; Rolfe's Life of Shakespeare (1904) ; Schmidt's 
Shakespeare Lexicon (3d ed. 1902) ; Littledale's ed. of Dyce's 
Glossary (1902) ; Bartlett's Concordance to Shakespeare (1895) 5 
Abbott's Shakespearia7t Grammar (1873) ; Furness's "New Vari- 
orum " ed. of the plays (encyclopaedic and exhaustive) ; Dowden's 
Shakspere : LLis Mind and Art (American ed. 1881) ; Hudson's 
Life, Art, and Characters of Shakespeare (revised ed. 1882) ; 
Mrs. Jameson's Characteristics of Women (several eds. ; some with 
the title, Shakespeare Heroines^ ; Ten Brink's Five Lectures on 
Shakespeare (1895) 5 Boas's Shakespeare and His Predecessors 
(1895) 'y Dyer's Folk-lore of Shakespeare (American ed. 1884) ; 



Notes 175 



Gervinus's Shakespeare Co77iinentaries (Bunnett*s translation, 
1875) J Wordsworth's Shakespeare's Knoivledge of the Bible (3d 
ed. 1880) ; Elson's Shakespeare in Music (1901). 

Some of the above books will be useful to all readers who are 
interested in special subjects or in general criticism of Shakespeare. 
Among those which are better suited to the needs of ordinary- 
readers and students, the following may be mentioned : Mabie's 
William Shakespeare : Poet^ Dramatist, and Mail (1900) ; Dow- 
den's Shakspere Priiner (1877 ; small but invaluable) ; Rolfe's 
Shakespeare the Boy (1896 ; not a mere juvenile book, but useful 
for general reference on the home and school life, the games and 
sports, the manners, customs, and folk-lore of the poet's time) ; 
Guerber's Myths of Greece and Rome (for readers and students 
who may need information on mythological allusions not explained 
in the notes). 

II. Snowden Ward's Shakespeare'* s Town and Times (2d ed. 
1902) and John Leyland's Shakespeare Country (2d ed. 1903) are 
copiously illustrated books (yet inexpensive) which may be par- 
ticularly commended for school libraries and the general reader. 

Abbreviations in the Notes. — The abbreviations of the names 
of Shakespeare's plays will be readily understood ; as T. N, for 
Twelfth Night, Cor, for Coriolantis, 3 Hen. VI. for The Third 
Part of King Henry the Sixth, etc. P, P. refers to The Passionate 
Pilgrim ; V. and A. to Venus and Adonis ; L. C. to Lover^s Com- 
plaint ; and Sonn. to the So7i7iets. 

Other abbreviations that hardly need explanation are Cf. (^confery 
compare), Fol. (following), Id. {idem, the same), and Prol. (pro- 
logue). The numbers of the lines in the references (except for the 
present play) are those of the "Globe" edition (the cheapest and 
best edition of Shakespeare in one compact volume), which is now 
generally accepted as the standard for line-numbers in works of ref- 
erence (Schmidt's lexicon, Abbott's Grammar, Dowden's Pritner, 
the publications of the New Shakspere Society, etc.). 



176 Notes [Act I 



THE PROLOGUE 

This prologue is certainly not Shakespeare's. It is probably by 
Fletcher. " Several of his favourite images are employed in it, 
and the general style resembles that of his undoubted prologues " 
(Littledale). Knight omits the whole of it, and Skeat the first 
twelve lines. 

24, 25. Weak . . . water. The quarto joins this to what pre- 
cedes, putting a period after water. The arrangement in the text 
is due to Dyce. 

26. Tack. The reading of the folio (that is, the 1679 folio of 
Beaumont and Fletcher) ; the quarto has " take." 

29. Travail. The old eds. have " travell " or " travel." S. uses 
the words interchangeably. 



ACT I 

Scene I. — The critics generally agree that this scene is Shake- 
speare's; but Dowden, Nicholson, Littledale, Furnivall, and Hud- 
son assign the Song to Fletcher, to whom it probably belongs. 

The old stage-direction makes the bride ^^ led by Pirithous;" cor- 
rected by Theobald; that is, in the 1750 ed. of Beaumont and 
Fletcher, edited by Theobald, Seward, and Sympson. Littledale 
says of it : ** Theobald, who died before the edition had advanced 
very far, has left a few good notes; Sympson's are occasionally 
presentable, but as for Seward — Seward * never deviates into 
sense.' " Coleridge asks : " Did the name of criticism ever descend 
so low as in the hands of those two fools and knaves, Seward and 
Sympson ? " Again he apostrophizes the former thus : " Mr. 
Seward! Mr. Seward! you may be, and I trust you are, an angel; 
but you were an ass." 

On her tresses likewise hanging, Nicholson says : " This appear- 
ance of the bride in dishevelled hair, apparently a classic custom. 



Scene I] Notes 177 

betokened virginity, and was in use up to Jacobian times at least." 
He cites the reference to the marriage of the Countess of Essex to 
Somerset in A. Wilson's Life ofJa7Jies I. : *' She, thinking all the 
world ignorant of her slie practices, hath the impudence to appear 
in the habit of a Virgin, with her hair pendent almost to her feet; 
which Ornament of her body (though a fair one) could not cover 
the deformities of her soul." 

The 'wheate7i garland " seems to have been worn as an emblem 
of fertility, and perhaps also of peace — the causer of plenty" 
(Littledale). 

The So7tg is " evidently intended to be sung by the Boy, who also 
strews flowers, as indicated in the stage-direction and at line 15" 
(Skeat). 

4. Maiden pinks. Fresh pinks. Littledale thinks the reference 
may be to "the Matted Pinck " of Bacon's Essay Of Gardens, 
where it is specially commended for its odour. Miller ( Gardener'' s 
Diet.) describes a kind of Dianthus as " the small creeping or 
Maiden Pink, commonly called the mated Pink by seedsmen." 
Skeat says that this is the Dianthus virgineus, but the name is 
probably modern. I may add that S. refers to the pink only once 
(in R. and J. ii. 4. 61) and then figuratively. 

5. Smell-less yet most quaint. Furnivall says : " I cannot get 
over Chaucer's daisies being called * smell-less yet most quaint : ' 
the epithets seem to me not only poor but pauper, implying entire 
absence of fancy and imagination." Quai7it — trim, neat. 

6. Thyi?ie. Spelt " time" in the quarto ; as in AI. N. D. ii. i. 
249 and 0th. i. 3. 326, in the early eds. 

7. Pri?nrose, first-born child of Ver. Alluding, as Skeat says 
(in a note sent to Littledale, correcting that given in his own ed.) 
" to the apparent etymology of the French name for the primrose, 
prifjievere,^ which was supposed to be = pri7?ia veris. It is rather 
= pri7?iula veris, if taken from the Latin ; but Brachet supposes it 
to be the Italian primavera. The usual spelling in old writers is 
prime-rose; as in Bacon's E?>^z.y Of Garde tts. 

TWO NOBLE KINSMEN — 12 



178 Notes [Act I 

9. With her bells dim, Skeat (followed by Hudson) reads 
" hairbells dim." This, as Littledale remarks, " is very ingenious 
and supported by strong presumptive evidence ; " but he goes on 
to show that the old reading is probably right. Skeat says that the 
system requires the accent on the second syllable ; but Littledale 
replies that " the irregularity of the number of syllables and the 
words used in these third lines rather indicate that there is but 
one emphatic word in the line." Besides, as he adds, there is 
"an important st?'uctural obstacle" to the arrangement of Skeat. 
*' Looking through the song, we see one half (three lines exactly) 
of each stanza occupied by one idea, and the remaining half devoted 
to a group of objects ;" and " the change would destroy this designed 
symmetry." Skeat also objects that bells " makes no sense " as 
applied to the primrose ; but S. uses it of the cowslip in Te7np. v. 
I. 89, and both old and modern poets often make bell — blossom. 
Herford, who retains the old text, remarks that bells carries out the 
notion of hai-binger. Dim is as appropriate an epithet for the 
primrose as pale in W, T, iv. 4. 122 and Cymib. iv. 2. 221 ; but it 
is not so suitable for the harebell (^Campanula roticndi folia) or the 
blue-bell (^Agr aphis nuta7is)^ which Skeat thinks to be probably 
the flower meant here. " Violets dim " in W, T, iv. 4. 120 is not 
a parallel case, as dim seems there to be = retiring, modest, " half- 
hidden from the eye." 

10. Oxlips. " The greater cowslip, Pr2;;/w/<2 elatior''^ (Schmidt). 
Cf. M. N. D, ii. I. 250 and W. T. iv. 4. 125. 

Cradles. Furnivall wrote to Dr. R. C. A. Prior, author oi Popular 
Na??tes of British Plants, for an explanation of this word and of the 
allusion to death-beds in the next line, and got the reply : " I am 
quite at a loss for the meaning of cradles and death-beds ; " but 
Mr. William Whale of the Egham Nurseries answered the same 
inquiry thus : " The root-leaves of the oxlip are cradle-shaped, but 
circular instead of long. The growth of the leaves would certainly 
give one an idea of the stem and oxlip flowers being lodged in 
a cradle [? saucer], I have seen the marigold (the Calendula 



Scene I] Notes 179 

officinalis^ or medicinal marigold, not the African or French sorts 
which are now so improved and cultivated in gardens) in my boy- 
ish days frequently placed on coffins ; and in a warm death-room 
they would certainly flower." Cf. Per, iv. I. 16: — 

" and marigolds 
Shall as a carpet hang upon thy grave 
While summer days do last," 

See also W. T. iv. 4. 105, Sonn. 25. 6, and R. of L. 397. On 
death-beds blowing may mean planted on graves, as it is said they 
still are in Wales, and probably elsewhere. 

12. Larks^ -heels, "Not the same as larkspur, as one might sup- 
pose, but a kind of nasturtium, the Tropceohcm minus^'' (Skeat). 
The name was, however, sometimes used loosely for larkspur, 
Cotgrave, s. v. Alouette, has : " Pied d^alouette, the herb Larks- 
spur, Larks-claw, Larks-heel, Larkes-toes, Monkshood." 

16. Angel. " Literally, a messenger (Greek d[77eXos), but here 
prettily used to signify a bird). The same use of the word occurs 
in Massinger's Virgin Martyr, ii. 2, where the Roman eagle is 
spoken of as * the Roman angeV The idea is as old as Homer, 
who uses the expression oiujvbv, rax^v dyyeXov (Iliad, xxiv. 292). 
Observe, too, that angel implies a bird of good omen, to the 
exclusion of such ill-omened birds as the crow, the cuckoo, and 
the raven" (Skeat), 

19. Slanderous. Because supposed to tell tales of unfaithful 
wives. Cf. Z, Z. Z. v. 2. 908 : — 

"The cuckoo, then, on every tree, 
Mocks married men," etc. 

See also M. N, D, iii. i. 134 and A, W. i. 3. 67. 

20. The boding raven. Cf. T, and C, v. 2. 191 and 0th. iv. i. 22. 
Chough hoar. The quarto has " clough hee," and the folio 

" clough he; " corrected by Seward. Cf. M, N. D. iii. 2. 21. 
Charles Lamb wanted to read: — 



i8o Notes [Act I 

" The crow, the slanderous cuckoo, 
The boding raven, nor the chough " 

(the pronunciation choo is said to be still heard in the North of 
England), and Littledale prefers this to " Seward's very feeble bit 
of tinkering." He objects to hoar that it is "a purely descriptive 
epithet, and utterly devoid of any symbolic meaning, while all the 
rest have some reference to the requirements of the case." It may 
be added that the emendation makes the verse very clumsy ; but 
if nor at the end of 19 is right, this is inevitable, whatever rhyming 
word may be supplied. 

21. Chattering pie. The magpie. Cf. 3 He7i. VL v. 6. 47: 
" And chattering pies in dismal discords sung." In Macb, iii. 4. 
125 S. calls it " maggot-pie." 

22. Bride-hotise. Nares quotes Nomenclator, 1585: "A bride- 
house^ as when a hall or other large place is provided to keepe the 
bridall in, when the dwelling house is not of sufficient roome to 
serve the turne ; " and the old Tajning of a Shrew : — 

" Why come, man, we shall have good cheere 
Anon at the bride house." 

24. Walker asks : " Is the Epithalamium broken off by the 
entrance of the Queens ? It seems unfinished ; and it is more 
natural, I think, that it should be interrupted." 

25. Gentility, Gentle birth; as in A, V. Z. i. I. 22; "mines 
my gentility with my education." 

33. /Haze you. Erase for you. The you is the expletive or 
*' ethical dative." 

34. All yoUf etc. All for which you, etc. 

36. Stead. Assist. Cf. M. of V. i. 3. 7 : " May you stead 
me ! " etc. 

40. Endure. The quarto has "endured," and the folio "en- 
dur'd ; " corrected by Mason. In Chaucer Creon is " of Thebes 
kyng," as here. 

41. Talons. Spelt "Tallents" in the quarto. Cf. the pun in 



Scene I] Notes l8l 

Z. L. Z. iv. 2. 64. For the grouping of birds of prey, cf. /. C v. I. 
85: " ravens, crows, and kites." 

44. Urn. Cf. hiurn'd in Hatn, i. 4. 49. Spalding notes the 
Shakespearian character of the verb (the noun used as verb), as 
of chapel in 50 below. 

45. Eye Of holy Phoebus. Cf. Hen. V. iv. i. 290: "Sweats in 
the eye of Phoebus," and A. and C. iv. 8. 29 : *' holy Phoebus' car." 

47. Duke I Cf. M. N. D. i. i. 19: "Theseus, our renowned 
duke." The word is often used loosely ( = the Latin diix, leader) 
in old writers. 

48. Purger. Ci. J. C. ii. I. 180: "We shall be call'd purgers, 
not murtherers." Spalding remarks that "verbal names expressing 
the agent . . . are in an especial manner frequent with Shakespeare, 
who invents them to preserve his brevity, and always applies them 
with great force and quaintness." 

55. Transported. Rapt ; as in Te7np. i. 2. 76. "Theseus 
means that he would have bidden her rise sooner, only that he 
was so carried away by her story as to make him unobservant of 
her attitude" (Skeat). 

58. Vengeance and revenge. The tautology is apparently em- 
phatic. Cf. Rich. II. iv. I. 67: "shall render vengeance and 
revenge." 

59. Capaneus. " Four syllables, accented on the first and third. 
Chaucer also has it as four syllables, but accents it on the second 
and fourth. Properly, it has but three syllables, being the Greek 
KaTTttj'eys. Capaneus was one of the seven heroes who marched 
from Argos against Thebes. The story is that he was struck by 
lightning as he was scaling the walls, because he had dared to defy 
Zeus ; and, whilst his body was burning, his wife Evadne leaped 
into the flames and destroyed herself. The story in Chaucer and 
in this play is somewhat different, as Evadne answers to the First 
Queen" (Skeat). 

64. Spread her. Overspread her, cover her. Seward ("stupid- 
ly," Littledale says) would omit her^ but, as Skeat remarks, "this 



1 82 Notes [Act I 

does not improve either the sense or the metre ; the introduction 
of an extra syllable at a pause in the verse is no blemish, but a 
beauty." Hudson omits her. 

66. Ki7tS77ian. See the Life of Theseus in North's Plutarch: 
" They were neere kinsmen, being cosins remoued by the mothers 
side. For ^thra [Theseus' mother] was the daughter of Pitheus, 
and Alcmena, the mother of Hercules, was the daughter of Lysi- 
dices, the which was halfe sister to Pitheus, both [being] children 
of Pelops and of his wife Hippodamia." Cf. M. N. D. v. i. 47: 
*' In glory of my kinsman Hercules." Skeat says that " Hercules 
is apparently a dissyllable here ; " but it should certainly have its 
ordinary pronunciation, the light extra syllable not marring the 
measure. 

68. Nej?iea7t. The early eds. have " Nenuan ; " corrected by 
Seward. For the accent, cf. Ham. i. 4. ^^^ and L. L. Z. iv. I. 90. 

73. Whereto. In addition to which. Cf. thereto in W. T. i. 2. 
391, 0th. ii. I. 133, and Cy77ib. iv. 4. i^- 

74. Our U7idertaker ! The man to undertake the work of 
avenging us. S. uses the word only twice ( T. N'. iii. 4. 349 and 
Cth. iv. I. 224), and in both instances with a meaning similar to 
this. Skeat quotes Fletcher, Love's Progress^ i. i : " First, for the 
undertaker, I am he ; " Hallam, Co7ist. Hist, of Eug. : " Neville, 
and others who, like him, professed to understand the temper of 
the commons, and to facilitate the King's dealings with them, were 
called UTtdertakers ; " and Spectator, No. 432 : " I find you are a 
general undertaker," etc. 

75. Bellona. For the allusion to the Roman goddess of war, cf. 
Macb. i. 2. 54 : " Bellona's bridegroom." 

80. Wast 7iear to 77iake, etc. " * Didst nearly make the male sex 
captive to thine own sex, had it not been that this lord of thine, 
Theseus — who was born to keep created things in the same rela- 
tive position of honour in which nature first appointed them — 
caused thee to shrink back within the bound which thou wast 
overflowing.' Creation properly means all created things, but is 



Scene I] Notes 1 83 

here used with particular reference to human beings. Cf. Genesis 
iii. 16 " (Skeat). StyVd it = fixed the sty/e or rank of it. 

87. JV/io now, I know. The quarto has " Whom " for Who ; 
corrected by Dyce. The old reading may have been a " confusion 
of construction." Y ox power on, cf. T. G. of V. iii. i. 238 : "power 
upon my life ; "* Cymb, v. 5. 418: "The power that I have on you 
is to spare you," etc. 

%%. Ow'st, Ownest, possessest ; as in v. 4. 50 below. 

89. Servant, Skeat remarks : ^^ Servant is used not quite in 
the modern sense, but in the old sense of an obedient and devoted 
lover ; see iii. 6. 149 below. It is the proper antithesis of mistress. 
Thus, in Beaumont and Fletcher's Philaster, iii. 2, Philaster ad- 
dresses Arethusa as * my dearest mistress,^ whereupon Arethusa 
replies with* my dearest j^rz/^/^/.' The best comment upon this 
is furnished by the words of Theseus in Chaucer's Knightes Tale, 

956: — 

' For in my tyme a seruaiuit was I oon. 
And therfor, sine I know oiloues peyne^ etc." 

For = as regards ; as often in S. Seward (followed by Hudson) 
changed y^r to "to." 

90. Glass of ladies. " A Shakespeare fancy," as Spalding notes. 
Cf. Ham. iii. i. 161 : "The glass of fashion," etc. 

93. Require him he advance it. Ask him to raise it. On 
advance, cf. Cor. i. I. 61, ii. I. 178, etc. ; and for require, see on 
v. I. 39 below. 

98. Than a dove's motion, etc. Cf. R. of L. 457: "Like to a 
new-kill'd bird she trembling lies." 

99. Blood-siz^d. Cf. Ham. ii. 2. 484 : '* o'er-sized with coagulate 
gore " (that is, covered as with size or glue). 

102. I had as lief, etc. I would as soon follow out this good 
work with you as the marriage ceremony to which I am bound, 
though I never yet went so willingly as to that. Had as //^(like 
had better, had rather, etc.) is still good English. 

107. Uncandied. Thawed, dissolved, Cf. " candied with ice " 



1 84 Notes [Act I 

in T. of A, iv. 3. 226, and discandy (= thaw) in A, and C. iii. 13. 
165 and iv. 12. 22. 

108. So sorrow, etc. So sorrow becomes the deeper for being 
unable to utter itself. 

111. There, through my tears, etc. There you see it only 
imperfectly, as pebbles appear distorted in the running brook. 

Wrinkled, to my thinking, is peculiarly expressive. Seward changes 
there to "here" = in my heart (with appropriate gesture). 

112. Glassy, The early eds. have "glass" or "glasse;" cor- 
rected by Seward. 

113. May behold ^em. Dyce and Hudson read "it" for Vw. 
In my opinion the change to the plural is to be explained by 
the intervening /^^^/^j/ but Nicholson thinks it is made "either 
because she is thinking of her eyes as ostents of her grief, or, what 
is much the same, because she is thinking of the grief in either eye, 
and therefore griefs,^'' Cf. the use of their — his, in iii. 5. 128 
below. 

1 14. He that will, etc. " He who desires to discover all the 
world's wealth must dig deeply towards its centre ; he who would 
win the least good-will from me must let his search descend to my 
heart, like one who, fishing for minnows, so loads his line with 
lead as to make it sink deeply. The simile is intentionally strained 
and far-fetched, to denote the queen's distress ; as explained in the 
next sentence " (Skeat). 

118. Extremity, etc. Cf. Beaumont and Fletcher, Honest Man^s 

Fortune, iii. I : — 

" Cunning Calamity, 
That others' gross wits uses to refine, 
When I most need it, dulls the edge of mine." 

122. Ground-piece, Perhaps = study for a picture, sketch. 
Littledale thinks grou7id may be = surface, and ^^ground-piece — 
pictured as distinguished from sculptured work, superficial seem- 
ing ; or (2) gro7cnd = foundation (cf. groimd-worh) and grotmd- 
piece = mode], subject-matter; or (3) ground = -pnucipa.], main, 



Scene I] Notes 185 

chief, and g7'ound-piece = masterpiece ; or (4) ground — foil, dull 

* ground' of a picture, as contrasted with the glare and prominence 

of her sorrow." In any case, ^''seeming and being are contrasted." 

132. Longer. The old eds. have "long; " corrected by Seward. 

134. Knolls. Cf. A. V. L. ii. 7. 114 : " where bells have knoll'd 
to church." 

135. Your first thought, etc. Possibly suggested by a passage in 
North's Plutarch, immediately preceding that quoted in the note 
to 66 above : " For then he did manifestly open himselfe, and he 
felt the like passion in his heart which Themistocles long time 
afterwards endured when he said, that the victorie and triumph of 
Miltiades would not let him sleepe. For euen so, the wonderful 
admiration which Theseus had of Hercules courage made him in 
the night that he neuer dreamed but of his noble acts and doings, 
and in the daytime, pricked forward with emulation and enuie of 
his glory, he determined with himselfe one day to do the like, and 
the rather because they were neere kinsmen," etc. Again, in the 
same Life of Theseus, ed. 161 2, we read: "Others say . . . that 
he was at the iourney of Cholchide [Colchis] with lason, and that 
he did helpe Meleager to kil the wild bore of Calydonia : from 
whence, as they say, this prouerbe came ; Not without Theseus; 
meaning that such a thing was not done without great helpe of an- 
other. Howbeit it is certaine that Theseus selfe did many famous 
acts without aide of any man, and that for his valiantnesse this 
prouerbe came in vse, which is spoken : This is another Theseus. 
Also he did helpe Adrastus, king of the Argives, to recouer the 
bodies of those that were slaine in the battell before the city of 
Thebes." 

136. Meditance. Premeditation ; not found in S. 

138. As ospreys, etc. Cf. Cor, iv. 7. 34: "As is the osprey to 
the fish," etc. Here, as there, the spelling is aspray in the old eds. 
It is the Fandion heliaetus, also called the fish-hawk. It was sup- 
posed to have the power of fascinating fishes. 

142. Cords, knives, drams, precipita7ice. That is, hanging, stab- 



1 86 Notes [Act I 

bing, poison, leaping down a precipice. Knight and Skeat read 
"cords', knives', drams' precipitance;" making precipitance^ 
" headlong haste, desperate rashness." The early eds. have no 
comma after draf?is. Cf. Cymb. v. 5. 213 and Oih. iii. 3. 388. 

143. Wea^y of this world^s light, Skeat quotes Virgil, y^neid, 
vi. 434: — 

'* Proxima deinde tenent moesti loca, qui sibi letum 
Insontes peperere manu, lucemque perosi 
Proiecere animas." 

146. Visitating. Surveying. Cf. Cotgrave, Fr. Diet. : " Visiter, 
to visit, or go to see ; to view, survey, overlook, oversee." Visit 
is often similarly used in S. ; as in Teuip, i. 2. 308, M, for M. iii. I. 
46, iii. 2. 272, L. L. L. V. 2. 861, etc. 

149. To give. By giving ; one of the commonest constructions 
in S. Cf. iii. i. 25 below. 

152. N'ow ^t will take for m^ etc. That is, " Strike while the iron 
is hot " and can be shaped, not wait till it is cold, when you will 
sweat to no purpose in trying to make it take for 7n. 

154. It^s. In i. 2. 65 below, the quarto has "its." The 1st folio 
has it''s in every instance in S. except M. for AL i. 2. 4, where it 
is its. 

Secure. Careless, unguarded (Latin securtis) ; as often in S. 

155. Not dreams. Seward and Hudson change Not to " Nor." 

156. Rinsing. The early eds. have " wrinching," which is prob- 
ably phonetic. In Hen. VIII. i. i. 167, the 1st folio has "wrench- 
ing." There is no other instance of the word in S. 

158. FiUl Of bread. Cf. Hain. iii. 3. 80. See also Ezekiel^ xvi. 49. 

159. " Artesius must be supposed to be an Athenian captain, 
present on the stage, though no speech is assigned to him, and his 
entrance and exit are alike unnoticed in the old copies. Theseus 
addresses him again in 211 ; and the proper time for his exit is at 
218" (Skeat). 

Dyce and Hudson take fit to be the verb, and point the passage 
thus: — 



Scene I] Notes 187 

•' Artesius, that best know'st 
How to draw out, fit to this enterprise 
The prim'st for this proceeding, and the number 
To carry such a business ; forth and levy," etc. 

I prefer (with others) to follow the early eds. 

165. Take ha7ids ! "Let us join hands and depart together; 
intended as an expression of despair" (Skeat). 

166. Let tis be widows to our woes! Hickson cites this as an 
example of Shakespeare's " certain boldness of metaphor, carried 
sometimes to that extreme that it requires a considerable effort of 
the understanding to follow it." It is certainly far from clear, but 
I think it means. Let us continue to weep over our woes, as we do 
over our husbands ; we have no hope here. Skeat says : " Per- 
haps this obscure expression intimates that they would not have 
even the opportunity of mourning at their husbands' tombs. Hav- 
ing no memorials of their husbands to point to, they had but their 
woes to shew that they were widows." Littledale explains it thus: 
" Let us be widows to our woes, as well as to our husbands ; for as 
Creon has left our dead lords unburied, so our woes have been left 
unburied by Theseus." Herford takes woes to be = the utterance 
of our woes: "Let us abandon one pathetic appeal to which (as 
our hope) we were wedded ; to prolong it would only make our 
case more desperate." 

172. War, The early eds. have "was;" corrected by Theo- 
bald. Lnports = concerns. 

176. Lock. Detain by embraces. Synod \s applied to an assem- 
bly of the gods in six out of seven instances in S. 

177. Corslet, See on urn, 44 above. 

178. Twinning. The early eds. have "twyning" or "twin- 
ing ; " corrected by Theobald. Cf. Beaumont and Fletcher, Night- 
Walker, iii. 6 : — 

" Let me suffer death 
If in my apprehension two twinn'd cherries 
Be more akin than her lips to Maria ; " 



1 88 Notes [Act I 

and Philaster^ ii. 2 : " they are two twinn'd cherries " (referring to 
lips). Fall = let fall ; as often in S. 

179. TastefuL Keen of taste. Not found in S. Richardson 
quotes Crashaw, The Flaming Heart : — 

" Say, all ye wise and well-pierc'd hearts, 
That live and die amidst her darts. 
What is 't your tasteful spirits do prove, 
In that rare life of her, and love ? " 

180, Blubber'' d. Disfigured by weeping. The word did not 
formerly convey the somewhat ludicrous idea which it does at 
present. The only instance of it in the text of S. (it is found in a 
stage-direction in 2 Hen, IV. ii. 4. 421) is in R. and J, iii. 3. 87, 
where it is put into the mouth of the Nurse. Here it is used ac- 
tively, as passive participles often are in writers of the time. We 
still use "well-behaved," "well read" ("a well-read man"), etc. 
See also 215 below. 

186. Though much unlike^ etc. "Though I think it very im- 
probable that you should be so transported as she describes, and 
equally sorry that I should urge such a petition as I now proceed 
to make" (Skeat). Hudson reads "much I like," which seems 
unmaidenly. 

190. Surfeit, Sickness, from excess of grief. 

195. Or sentencing, etc. " Or forever condemning their power 
to silence " (Skeat and Herford). Hudson explains it : " Or con- 
cluding them to be forever without force, or no better than speech- 
less." 

209. Success. Accented on the first syllable. Cf. v. 3. 69 below, 

210. Pretended. Intended. Cf. Macb. ii. 4. 24, T, G. of V. ii. 
6. 37, etc. 

211. Follow your soldier, etc. The early eds. point the line 
thus : " Follow your Soldier (as before) hence you ; " corrected 
by Mason. 

212. Aulis. The early eds. have " Anly ; " corrected by Theo- 



Scene I] Notes 189 

bald. Hudson adopts Heath's conjecture of " Ilisse " (= Ilyssus), 
assuming that the name of a river is required ; but bafik is often 
applied to the seashore. See i Hen, IV, iii. i. 45, 2 Hen. VI, iii. 
2. %2>^ Rich. Ill, iv. 4. 525, Somi. 56. 1 1, etc. 

214. Moiety, Part ; not necessarily a half. Cf. M, of V, iv. i. 
26, Ham, i. I. 90, etc. 

215. More bigger looked. " Which was expected to have been a 
greater one. We are to suppose that Theseus had planned some 
great expedition, to be undertaken after his marriage- feast was 
over, and had collected part of an army for that purpose. He now 
intends to march against Thebes, the taking of which he looked 
upon as easy, without completing that army to its full number" 
(Skeat). For the form of /^^/^V see on 180 above. 

216. Sta77ip , , . currant , . . token! There is a play upon 
the words as applied to coin. 

222. Watit, Lack, be incomplete. Hudson adopts Seward's 
conjecture of " wait." Skeat remarks : " The suggestion is a poor 
one ; he must have forgotten the common use of want in our old 
dramatists." Herford retains want, Cf. T. of S. iii. 2. 4, etc. On 
sole??inityy cf. A, W, ii. 3. 187, T, of S, iii. 2. 103, etc. 

230. They themselves. That is, the gods, who are sometimes 
slaves to their passions. 

233. Human. The quarto has *' humane." S. and other writers 
of the time use the words interchangeably. The accent is always 
on the first syllable. Hu7iian title — the right to the name of man. 

Spalding says of this scene : " It has sometimes Shakespeare's 
identical images and words ; it has his quaint force and sententious 
brevity, crowding thoughts and fancies into the narrowest space, 
and submitting to obscurity in preference to feeble dilation ; it 
has sentiments enunciated with reference to subordinate relations, 
which other writers would have expressed with less grasp of 
thought ; it has even Shakespeare's alliteration, and one or two 
of his singularities in conceit ; it has clearness in the images taken 
separately, and confusion from the prodigality with which one is 



190 Notes [Act I 

poured out after another, in the heat and hurry of imagination ; it 
has both fulness of illustration, and a variety which is drawn from 
the most distant sources ; and it has, thrown over all, that air of 
originality and that character of poetry, the principle of which is 
often hid when their presence and effect are most quickly and 
instinctively perceptible." 

Hickson remarks: "The first thing that seems to indicate the 
presence of the mind of Shakespere is the clearness with which, in 
the first scene, we are put in possession of the exact state of affairs 
at the opening of the play, without any circumlocution of long- 
winded harangues, but naturally and dramatically. And, indeed, 
one of the most striking characteristics of Shakespere is, if we may 
so express it, the downright honesty of his genius, that disdains 
anything like trick or mystery. This is almost peculiar to Shake- 
spere. Where, in his works, as much is revealed at the very open- 
ing as is necessary to the understanding of the plot, we find, in the 
works of other dramatists, as much kept back as possible ; and we 
are continually greeted with some surprise or startled with some 
unexpected turn in the conduct of the piece." 

Scene II. — i. Dearer in love than blood, Skeat contrasts this 
with Ham, i. 2. 65 : "A little more than kin, and less than kind." 

2. Prime, Chief, first in our love. 

6. We shajfie. Hudson reads " were shame." 

8. /' the aid 0'* the airrent. With the stream. "What Arcite 
means to urge as a reason for their quitting Thebes is, that, if they 
struggled against the current of the fashion (which is denoted by 
wf?/ swimming in the aid oi it), their striving would answer no pur- 
pose ; and that, if they followed the common stream, it would lead 
them to an eddy where they would either be drowned or reap no 
advantage from their labouring through it but life and weakness " 
(Mason). 

13. Rtcins. " Not material ruins of houses, but wrecks of men, 
that is, men who are but wrecks of their former selves. Palamon 



Scene II] Notes 191 

is following up the idea started by Arcite, that the men in Thebes 
were mostly coming to ruin. Hence the word walking may just as 
well agree with ruins as refer to Palamon himself; and he goes on 
to say that he sees upon them little else but scars and bare gar- 
ments (such being the common meaning of weeds in our old 
authors) ; and these scars are all that the martiahsts (or men fond 
of war) really gain, though hoping to win honor and money. Ob- 
serve the phrase * when such I meet ' in 21 ; and so in 27 " (Skeat). 
There can be no doubt, I think, that walking refers to rtiins. For 
weedsy cf. M. N. D. ii. I. 253, ii. 2. 71, etc. Bare = threadbare. 
Martialist is not used by S., while Beaumont and Fletcher have 
the word twice. 

18. Had not. Did not get for himself, for it went to the captain. 
Cf. 34 below. 

Fltirted, Scorned ; used by S. only in the compound fiirt-gills 
(^. and J. ii. 4. 162), but rather common in Beaumont and Fletcher. 

22. Jealousy, Referring to the origin of the Trojan war. 

24. For her repletion. Littledale makes this = against her re- 
pletion, as a remedy for it ; but I do not see why it may not mean 
on account of it. Repletio7t is not used by S. 

Retain — employ, take into service ; as in Hen. VI I L i. 2. 192. 
Hudson adopts Heath's conjecture of " reclaim." Skeat suggests 
" regain ; " but, as Littledale says, regain anew would be = gain 
anew aneiv. 

26. Otit? Wrong, astray. Cf. W. T. ii. i. 72 : " O, I am out ! " 

28. Cranks. Winding streets. S. uses it only in Cor. i. i. 141 : 
" cranks and offices of man " (that is, of the body). For the verb 
(= wind), see V. and A. 682 and i Hen. IV. iii. I. 99. 

40. Even jump. Just exactly. Cf. Ham. i. i. 65, v. 2. 385, etc. 

41. As they are here^ etc. Weber and Skeat follow the old eds. 
in putting the comma after are^ joining here to what comes after. 
The sense is the same, and the rhythm better, with the pointing in 
the text. 

42. And Such things to be mere inonsters. " And to be such 



192 Notes [Act I 

things (as they are) were to be mere monsters" (Nicholson). 
Weber makes the words a mere expansion of what precedes : 
" we should be here (in Thebes) strangers, and such things as 
would be considered mere (that is, absolute) monsters, or things 
out of the common track of human customs." On mere in this 
sense, cf. M, of V. iii. 2. 265 : " his mere enemy," etc. On the 
form of the passage, cf. 7 fol. above : " for not to swim," etc. 

46. Faith ? Self-reliance ; a sense not found in S. 

48. Conceiv'd, Understood. Cf. Lear, i. i. 12, iv. 2. 24, etCo 

51. Follows, The ellipsis oi who is common. 

52. Make pursuit? There is a play upon this phrase, which 
means to prosecute, or bring a suit against, as well as to follow. 

54. For, Because ; but not like the modern use = because. 

60. Sequent trace. The trace (harness) behind me. S. uses 
trace in this sense only in R, arid J. i. 4. 61. 

61. Plantain, For the use of plantain leaves for wounds and 
bruises, cf. R, and J, i. 2. 52, and L. Z. L, iii. i. 74. In these 
passages, Ulrici takes " broken shin " to imply that the bone is 
fractured. He says : ** Romeo means. Thy remedy is as excellent 
for my complaint as a plantain leaf is for a broken shin. Plantain 
was used to stop the blood, but not for a fracture of a bone, to 
which such a remedy obviously cannot apply. Hence when Costard 
in Z. Z. Z. calls for a plantain leaf for his broken shin, or a fellow 
in Ben Jonson's The Case is Altered wants it for a broken head, it 
is, I think, in the same ironical sense as here. If Romeo, as the 
English commentators suppose, really considered plantain a good 
remedy for a broken bone, his words would have no sense." 
Schmidt understands the English idiom better, for he defines 
to break the head as = " to crack the skin of the head, so that the 
blood comes." Cf. M, W, \. i. 125, T, N, v. i. 178, etc., where 
Ulrici would of course see a fractured skull instead of a " bloody 
coxcomb." 

63. Whose successes, etc. Knight adopts Heath's conjecture of 
" success," and some change Makes to " Make." Littledale says 



Scene II] Notes 193 

that '' it is only ignorance of Shakespearian usage that has led 
editors to admit any change in either the noun or the verb 
here." 

65. Its, See on i. i. 154 above. Who is understood before 
puts; it is expressed two lines belov/. 

67. Attributes, Accented on the first syllable. The word is 
found in S. only in A. W, iii. 6. 64, where it occurs in prose. 
Littledale accents voluble on the penult, but this is not absolutely 
necessary. The word is used here in the etymological sense of 
"inconstant, fickle" (Latin volubilis, from volvere, to roll). Cf. 
the noun in Holland's Pliny : " The heaven bendeth and inclineth 
toward the centre, but the earth goeth from the centre, whiles the 
world, with continuall volubilitie and turning about it^ driveth the 
huge and excessive globe thereof into the forme of a round ball." 

69. Merits, The old eds. have "men ; " corrected by Seward. 

70. Glory ; one, etc. Some copies of the quarto (cf. p. 9 above) 
read " glory on That feares," others put a semicolon after " on." 
Seward, followed by most of the editors, reads " glory too ; " but, 
as Ingram suggested, the old " on " is = one, as not unfrequently. 
In i. 3. 75 below, the quarto has " humd on." In Z. Z. Z. iv. 3. 
142, the folio reads " On her haires were Gold, Christall the other 
eyes," etc. 

72. Sib, Akin, related. S. does not use the word ; but we 
have it in gossip, which, in its first and etymological sense, as Trench 
(^Select Glossary, etc.) remarks, " is a sponsor in baptism — one sib 
or akin in God, according to the doctrine of the mediaeval Church 
that sponsors contracted a spiritual affinity with one another, with 
the parents, and with the child itself." 

74. Clear-spirited, Skeat quotes Milton, Lycidas, 70 : " Fame 
is the spur which the clear spirit doth raise." See also v. 4. 13 
below. 

76. Our. Metrically a dissyllable. 

79. In blood unless in quality, " Not in kin, unless in kifid.''^ 
a. M, 0/ V, u, 3, 18: — 

TWO NOBLE KINSMEN — 1 3 



194 Notes [Act I 

" But though I am a daughter to his blood, 
I am not to his manners." 

See also i above. 

85. Fhcebtis, Qtc, Skeat remarks: "The allusion is probably to 
the story of Phaethon in Ovid ; the day after Phaethon's death, 
Phoebus could hardly be persuaded to drive the chariot of the sun 
once more, and wreaked some of his anger upon the horses, which 
he lashed severely. Cf. Mel. ii. 398 : — 

' Colligit amentes et adhuc terrore paventes 
Phoebus equos : stimuloque dolens et verbere saevit : 
Saevit enim, natumque obiectat et imputat illis.' " 

86. Whipstock, The English editors think it necessary to explain 
this as " the handle of a whip ; " but the word is in common use 
in this country. 

87. To. In comparison with ; a common use of the word. 

88. Small winds shake hi??i. Littledale prints this as an ex- 
clamation (which it certainly is not), and cites as a parallel Cymb. 
ii. 3. 136: "The south-fog rot him ! " 

95. Yet what man, etc. " The meaning is, what man can exert 
a third part of his powers when his mind is clogged with a con- 
sciousness that he fights in a bad cause ? " (Mason). 

103. Who. Referring to fate. The writer was thinking of the 
Fates, especially of Atropos, who cuts the thread of life. 

106. Intelligence. Skeat says that this is = messenger, as in 
K. John, iv. 2. 1 16 : " O, where hath our intelligence been drunk ? " 
but I see no necessity for explaining it so here, and in K, John the 
figure is similar to that in Macb. i. 7. 35 : " Was the hope drunk," 
etc. Intelligence is no more used concretely than care in the 
next line : — 

" O, where hath our intelligence been drunk ? 
Where hath it slept ? Where is my mother's care, 
That such an army could be drawn in France, 
And she not hear of it ? " 



Scene III] Notes 195 

109. Co7Jies. The quarto has "come," the folio "came ; " cor- 
rected by Colman. 

112. Our hands advanced, etc. If we lift our hands when we 
have no heart for the fight, etc. Cf. Warwick's description of his 
soldiers in 3 He7t. VI. ii. i. 130 fol. : — 

" Their weapons like to lightning came and went ; 
Our soldiers' — like the night-owl's lazy flight, 
Or like an idle thresher with a flail — 
Fell gently down, as if they struck their friends. 
I cheer'd them up with justice of our cause, 
With promise of high pay and great rewards, 
But all in vain ; they had no heart to fight. 
And we in them no hope to win the day." 

For advanced — uplifted, see on i. i. 93 above. 

116. Becking. Beckoning; as in A'./f?/^;^, iii. 3. 13 and /^. ^;zt/ 
C. iv. 12. 26. 

Spalding says of this scene : " Its broken versification points out 
Shakespeare ; the quaintness of some conceits is his ; and several 
of the phrases and images have much of his pointedness, brevity, 
or obscurity. The scene, though not lofty in tone, does not want 
interest, and contains some extremely original illustrations." 

Hickson thinks " that either Shakespeare and Fletcher wrote the 
scene in conjunction, or that it was originally written by Fletcher, 
and afterwards revised and partly re-written by Shakespeare." 

Littledale, after quoting these opinions, asks : "Does it not 
therefore appear more likely that the view put forward by Spalding, 
and upheld by Dyce, Skeat, and Swinburne — that Shakespeare 
was the first sketcher of the piece, Fletcher the *padder ; ' that 
the play is * gilt o'er-dusted,' rather than * dust that is a little gilt ' 
— gives after all the true explanation of the mystery ? " 

Scene III. — i. No further I Pirithous is going to follow 
Theseus to the war, and taking leave of Hippolyta and Emilia at 
the gates of Athens, bids them accompany him no further. 



[96 



Notes [Act I 



5. Dare. Defy ; as often. The early eds. have " dure," which 
Seward changed to " cure." Dare was the conjecture of Sympson 
and Heath. The latter, as quoted by Dyce, remarks : " The words 
excess and overflow of power relate not to the success of Theseus 
just before mentioned, but to the reinforcement Pirithous was on 
the point of leading to join his army. And the sense is — Though 
I dare not question the success of my lord even with the troops 
he has, yet I wish him rather excess and overflow of power, more 
force than is necessary, that, if possible, he may defy Fortune to 
disappoint him." Nicholson and Herford think that dare is used 
in " the fowling and hawking sense of terrifying a bird till it lay 
still and subdued, or, not daring flight, fled crouching on the 
ground." Cf. Hen. V. iv. 2. 36 and Hen. VI I L iii. 2. 282. I see 
no reason for giving it that special sense here. 

6. Store. Abundance, plenty ; as in T. G, of V. i. I. 105, 
C. of E. iii. I. 34, etc. 

7. His ocean, etc. Cf. A. and C. iii. 12. 8-10. 

10. Pieces. Works, creations. In = into ; as often. 
12. Speed. Success, fortune. Cf. T.ofS.'ii. i. 139: "Happy 
be thy speed," etc. 

14. Terrene. Cf. A. and C. iii. 13. 153: "our terrene moon." 

20. Broach V. Spitted. Cf. Hen. V. v. prol. 32 : " Bringing 
rebellion broached on his sword," etc. 

21. Sod. Seethed, boiled. CI R. of L. 1592: " Sod in tears," 
etc. Hudson arranges the passage thus : — 

" or women that 
Have sod their infants in the brine they wept 
At killing 'em, and often eat them," etc. 

24. Peace be to you, etc. "Peace be to you as long as I pursue 
this war ; when that is ended, we shall not need to pray for it " 
(Mason). 

27. Depart. For the noun, cf. T. G. of V. v. 4. 96, etc. 

Sports. Amusements, diversions ; referring to the festivities of 
which Pirithous had charge. 



Scene III] Notes 1 97 

31. Playing one. The quarto has "ore" for one^ a misprint 
which the folio changes to " o'er." The correction is Mason's. 
"The business which Pirithous was executing with his hand was 
the conducting of the festivities ; that which he directed in his 
head was the preparation for war" (Skeat). 

36. As dangerous as poor. As dangerous as it was poor. Some 
put a comma after dangerous, 

37. They have skiff'' d^ etc. " They have passed in a slight bark 
over torrents whose roaring tyranny and power, even when at the 
minimum of fury, were dreadful" (Weber). 

43. Cunning. Skill ; as often. 

53. Count, That is, of years. 

58. The quarto has here the following "warning" in the mar- 
gin ; " 2. Hearses ready with Palamon : and Arcite : the 3. 
Queenes. Theseus: and his Lordes ready." This is one of the 
indications that the quarto was set up from an acting copy of 
the play. 

61. For we did. Because we did. See on i. 2. 54 above. 

63. Operance, Operation ; not used by S. We find operant in 
T, of A, iv. 3. 25 and Ham. iii. 2. 184. 

66. No more arraignment. That is, without further trial. 

67. Then but beginning. The early eds. have " breasts, oh 
(then but beginning," etc. Littledale thinks that the parenthesis 
may be an interpolation of Fletcher's. He adds: "The statement 
cannot be objected to physiologically, but it certainly seems a su- 
perfluous piece of information from a dramatic point of view." 
It is not like S. 

71. Toy, Bit of finery. Cf. W, T. iv. 4. 326 : "Any toys for 
your head? " 

72. Her affections. What she affected, or liked. 

73. Though happily her careless ivear. The quarto reads 
"Though happely, her careles, were," and the folio "Though 
happily, her careless, were ; " corrected by Colman, who para- 
phrases the passage thus : " Her fa?icy (which was sure to be 



198 Notes [Act I 

pretty, even in her most careless dress) I copied in my most stud- 
ied adornments." For happily — haply, cf. Ha??i. ii. 2. 402, 0th. 
iii. 3. 238, etc. 

75. Ojte. The early eds. have "on," which was an old spelling 
of one. See on i. 2. 70 above. 

78. This rehearsal, etc. The quarto (followed essentially by the 

folio) reads : — 

*' This rehearsall 
(Which fury-innocent wots well) comes in 
Like old importments bastard, has this end, 
That the true love tweene Mayde, and mayde, may be 
More then in sex individual]. " 

The correction of every innocent for " fury-innocent " is Lamb's ; 
and dividual for " individual " is due to Seward and Sympson. 
The meaning of the expression. Like old i7nporti?ienf s bastard, is 
not clear, but the editors have perhaps tried to find too much in it. 
Weber explains the whole passage thus : " This rehearsal of our 
affections (which every innocent well knows comes in like the 
mere bastard, the faint shadow of the true import, the real extent 
of our natural affections) has this end," etc. Littledale gives it 
thus : " The end of this long relation, as every innocent is aware, 
comes in like the * illegitimate conclusion ' of a long story told very 
consequently." This is better than Weber's exegesis, because sim- 
pler and more in keeping with the playful tone of the parenthesis. 
Mason took i??iport??ient to be = the French emporte?7ient, " which 
signifies passion or transport," and made the parenthesis " (Which 
fury innocent, wot I well, comes in Like old emportment's bas- 
tard)," which he paraphrased as follows : " the innocent enthusiasm 
of which, I well know, comes in like the spurious offspring, the 
faint resemblance of the passion I formerly felt for Flavina," etc. 
S. does not use importment. Innocent, of course, is = idiot ; as in 
A, W. iv. 3. 213, Per. iv. 3. 17, etc. 

Skeat remarks here : " This beautiful passage is unfortunate in 
one respect, for it suggests a comparison with the well-known lines 



Scene III] Notes 199 

in the Af. N. D. iii. 2. 203, where Helena uses very similar lan- 
guage : *Both warbling of one song, both in one key,' etc. There 
is a remarkable parallel passage in Fletcher's play of the Lover^s 
Progress, ii. i, descriptive of the love of two male friends : — 
' Both brought up from our infancy together, 
One company, one friendship, and one exercise 
Ever affecting, one bed holding us. 
One grief and one joy parted still between us. 
More than companions, twins in all our actions, 
We grew up till we were men, held one heart still. 
Time call'd us on to arms ; we were one soldier. 
Alike we sought our dangers and our honours. 
Gloried alike one in another's nobleness.' 

"The word dividual here merely means different, and seems to 
have been used to round off the description. In Milton it means 
separable, and occurs in the Areopagitica, as well as in P. L. vii. 
382, xii. 85. Richardson has also the following quotation containing 
the word (from Brooke's Universal Beatity) : — 

' While through the pores nutritive portions tend. 
Their equal aliment dividual share. 
And similar to kindred parts adhere.' " 

Spalding says of this scene that much of it " has Shakespeare's 
stamp deeply cut upon it," and that it is " probably all his." Hick- 
son also praises it highly, as showing " the judgment of Shake- 
speare." He adds : " The friendship of Theseus and Pirithous 
becomes a natural introduction to the object of friendship in 
general, and female friendship in particular ; and, in this light, 
the character of Emilia is shown so simple, so pure, yet so fervent, 
that we justify and account for her irresolution and inability to 
decide between the rivals, both of whom she admires without 
actually loving either. It is a scene, in fact, necessary to that 
perfection of character and consistency of purpose which but one 
writer of the age attained. Struck out, the play would still be 
intelligible, as no part of the action would thereby be lost ; but 



200 Notes [Act I 

Emilia would straightway sink into one of those conventional char- 
acters that strange circumstances throw into the power of the 
dramatist, and, judged by any other than his own peculiar stand- 
ard, would certainly have little claim upon our respect." 

Scene IV. — On a battle struck in the stage direction, cf. Hen. V, 
ii. 4. 54 : " When Cressy battle fatally was struck." 

II. Even. Make even. Qi. A. W, i. 3. 3 : "to even your con- 
tent," etc. 

13. What are those ? Who are those? Here Theseus perceives 
the bodies of Palamon and Arcite. They are brought in " on 
hearses ; " but no stage direction appears in the old copies, as the 
"warning" in the margin at i. 3. 58 above was sufficient. Dyce 
(followed by Hudson) wrongly adds to the heading of the scene, 
" Dead bodies lying on the ground ; a7?iong them Palamon and 
Arcite:' 

15. Appointment, Accoutrement. Cf. iii. i. 40 below. 

18. Smear'' d. Some copies of the quarto have " smeard," others 
" succard." Cf. Cor. i. 6. 69. 

19. Make lanes. Cut their way through. Cf. 3 Hen. VI. i. 4. 9 : 
" Three times did Richard make a lane to me." 

21. What was V that prisoner, etc. The early eds. have "What 
prisoner was 't that ; " corrected by Dyce. 

22. We learn. The early eds. have " We leave ; " corrected 
by Heath. Knight and Skeat follow Seward in reading " With 
leave." Dyce at first gave " Wi' leave," but afterwards adopted 
Heath's conjecture. Littledale is inclined to think "leave" = 
"'lieve " (believe). 

31. Convent. Call together ; as in i. 5. 10 below. * 

40. Since I have known, etc. This is the great crux of the 

play, and has been the subject of much emendation and discussion. 

The quarto (followed essentially by the folio) reads : — 

" Since I have knowne frights, fury, friends, beheastes, 
Loves, provocations, zeale, a mistris Taske, 



Scene IV] Notes 20I 

Desire of liberty, a feavour, madnes, 

Hath set a marke which nature could not reach too 

Without some imposition, sicknes in will 

Or wrastling strength in reason, for our Love," etc. 

Seward transposed the line, Sickness in will, etc., after madness, 
and gave friends' behests and Lovers provocations, and suggested 
" 'T hath " for Hath, Heath would read " fights, fury " (for which 
Dyce gives fight's ftiry ) and " Have " for Hath. Dyce also reads, 
" zeal in a mistress' task," which Skeat adopts. Hudson has " zeal 
in misery's task," and "They 've" for Hath. He adopts Seward's 
transposition and readings, and says : " The idea running through 
the passage seems to be that the several things mentioned, from 
fight's fury to strength in reason, all crave or aim at something 
higher than man's natural powers can accomplish, unless specially 
stimulated thereto by moral and religious incitements. So Theseus 
proceeds to urge upon his subordinates our love and great Apollo's 
mercy as motives for outdoing themselves in order to effect the 
matter in question." But surely this is a strange preamble to such 
an appeal. If the thought had passed through the mind of The- 
seus at the time, he would not have paused to utter it. There is 
more of the clergyman than of the critic in this interpretation. 

Skeat says : " I do not see that the transposition suggested by 
Seward is necessary, or that it helps us in any way. With a 
slighter mending, we can do better. It is clear that friends should 
be a genitive case, coupled as it is with Love's provocatiojis ; and 
the suggestion yf^/^/' J y^ry is a great improvement upon ih& frights, 
fury of the old editions. The introduction of in after zeal, as 
proposed by Mr. Dyce, is also a happy thought. But there we 
may as well stop. I understand the word that before Hath, noth- 
ing being commoner in our dramatists than the omission of the 
relative ; and I retain Hath, without altering it, as some have 
done, to Have. I interpret it thus : * For I have known the fury 
of fight, the requisitions of friends, the provocations of love, the 
zeal employed in executing a mistress's task, or the desire of lib- 



202 Notes [Act I 

erty — to be (or, to amount to) a fever or a madness, which has 
proposed an aim (for endeavours) which the man's natural strength 
could not attain to, without at least some forcing, or some fainting 
of the will, or some severe struggle in the mind.' This is at least 
as good as any previous explanations, and further discussion of so 
difficult a passage would be useless. Imposition means demand or 
requirement, in an excessive degree." Herford adopts this expla- 
nation substantially. 

The reading and pointing in the text are those of Littledale, 
except that he retains the old *' frights, fury." His explanation, 
which, if not perfectly satisfactory, has the merit of simplicity, and 
also of connecting the passage naturally and appropriately with the 
context, is as follows : "Theseus directs that the prisoners shall 
be removed from all sights that might be suggestive of their cap- 
tivity, and so hinder their recovery, since he knows that, among 
other causes, desire of liberty hath sometimes produced a degree 
of mental apathy or delirium (^set a mark of sickness ifi will or 
wrestling strength i7i reason) which could only be combated by 
practising some deception {jiature could not reach to, etc.). Com- 
pare what the Doctor says of the Daughter's wrestlitig strength in 
reason (in her case produced by lovers provocations)^ iv. 3. 8 1 
below : * It is a falsehood she is in, which is with falsehoods to be 
combated^ " The singular hath is used because the subjects govern 
it separately, not collectively. 

46. Our best. That is, our best physicians. 

Spalding says of this scene that its phraseology is " like Shake- 
speare's, being brief and energetic, and in one or two instances 
passing into quibbles." Hickson considers that it "bears the 
marks of Shakespeare's hand too strongly to be mistaken." 

Scene V. — 3. Dole. Dolour, grief. Cf. A. Y. Z. i. 2. 39 : 
"pitiful dole"; Ham. i. 2. 13 : "weighing delight and dole," etc. 

4. Heavy cheers. Sad faces ; the original meaning of cheer^ 
Cf. M N. D. iii. 2. 96 : " pale of cheer," etc, 



Scene I] Notes 203 

6. Wild. For this poetical epithet Hudson substitutes Walk- 
er's tame conjecture of " wide." 

10. Co7ivent, See on i. 4. 31 above. 

11. Household'' s grave. The quarto has "households grave," 
the folio " household graver." 

15, 16. This world 's a city^ etc. This couplet is found on old 
gravestones in England and Scotland, with shght variations and 
with additional lines ; as in the following from Abernethy : — 

" The world 's a city 
Full of streets, 
And death 's a market 
That every one meets ; 
But if life were a thing 
That money could buy, 
The poor could not live 
And the rich would not die." 

Southey, in his Coijwionplace Books^ gives the following as an 
epitaph at Worpleton : — 

" Life is a city full of crooked streets, 
And Death the Marketplace where all men meets. 
If life were a merchandize which men could buy, 
The rich would purchase it, and only the poor would die." 

Spalding assigns this scene to Shakespeare ; Hickson is in 
doubt about it, but inclines to the same opinion. To Littledale 
the evidence seems to point the other way. The epithet quick- 
eyed does not occur in S. ; and the whole tone of the song is 
Fletcherian. 

ACT II 

Scene I. — Depart ivith. Part with. Cf. K. John, ii. I. 563, etc. 

5. Better lined. "Better off," better furnished with property. 
Cf. Macb. i. 3. 112, "did line the rebel With hidden help," etc. 
Littledale quotes Cleveland, Works, p. 93 : " But though he 
came alone, yet well lin'd it seems, with 133/. %dr 



204 Notes [Act II 

7. Delivered. " Given out," reported ; as often. 

15. Of her. From her ; as d?/ is often used. 

23. Strewings. Rushes to strew the floor. Cf. T, of S. iv. I. 
48 : " Is supper ready, the house trimmed, rushes strewed, cobwebs 
swept ? " See also R. of L. 2,^6: — 

" And being lighted, by the light he spies 
Lucretia's glove, wherein her needle sticks ; 
He takes it from the rushes where it lies." 

Sweet-smelling herbs were sometimes mixed with these rushes, 
which ordinarily were allowed to remain several days, or even 
weeks, and often became very dirty and unsavoury. It was 
thought to be a piece of unnecessary luxury, on the part of Wol- 
sey, when he wisely caused the rushes of Hampton Court to be 
changed every day. We have frequent allusions to them in the 
writings of the period. Froissart says, "The Count de St. Foix 
went to his chamber, which he found ready strewed with rushes 
and green leaves, and the walls hung with boughs newly cut for 
perfume." Sir Thomas More (1483) describes Elizabeth, the wid- 
owed Queen of Edward IV., when in the sanctuary at Westminster, 
as " sitting alone amongst the rushes in her grief and distress.'* 
Bradshaw, in the Lyfe of Saynt Werbtcrge (1500), writes: — 

" All herbes and flowres fragrant, fayre, and sweete, 
Were strewed in halls, and layd under theyr feet." 

In a description of Draper's Hall (1495), mats are said to be in the 
" Checker chamber," and rushes in the hall ; and, in the records 
of the Merchant Taylors' Hall, we find that " Guy Robinson, rush 
strewer, was suspended for using indecent language whilst strewing 
rushes." The last monarch whose presence-chamber was thus car- 
peted was Queen Elizabeth. 

29. Absolute, Complete, perfect. Cf. Ham, v. 2. 1 1 1 : "an 
absolute gentleman," etc. 

31. Stam??iers ^e??i. "Speaks stammeringly concerning them, 
does them but small justice " (Skeat). 



Scene II] Notes 205 

32. Grise. Step, grade. See 0th. \. 3. 200 : " a grise or step." 
The quarto has "greise," the folio "grief." Nares quotes from 
William Thomas's Hist, of Italy, 1561 : "certain skaffolds of 
horde, with grices or steppes one above another." The Promp- 
torium ParvtUortim has " Grece, or tredyl, or steyre. Gradus." 
"We find in Wiclif, Exodus, xx. 26 : " thou schalt not stye [ascend] 
hy grees to myn auter," and the singular form gree is also found, 
meaning a step. 

2,Z* -^^ l^^^ battle. Modifying doers, not reported, 

48. Presently. Immediately ; as very often. 

53. And so did they. Explaining why the Wooer had not seen 
them. 

62. Lord, the difference of men I Cf. Lear, iv. 2. 26 : " O, the 
difference of man and man ! " 

Spalding gives this scene (as he does all the underplot) to 
Fletcher ; but Hickson is firm in the belief that it is Shakespeare's. 
The fact that it is in prose is against its being Fletcher's ; and so 
is the fact that it does not fit exactly with the next scene, which is 
certainly his. In this scene the kinsmen are referred to as if in 
conversation, but in the next they begin with mutual salutations. 
There the Daughter speaks of them as having no sense of their 
captivity and as discoursing nothing of their own restraint and dis- 
asters, while here they discourse of nothing else. 

Scene II. — Weber, Dyce, and Skeat make this scene a con- 
tinuation of the preceding ; but the quarto distinguishes the two. 

21. Wore, The old eds. have "were;" corrected by Seward. 
Dyce reads " ware." 

22. Ravished, Snatched from. The old eds. have " Bravishd ; " 
corrected by Seward. 

28. Too-tij?iely, Too early, too forward. For timely = early, cf. 
C. of E, i. I. 139 : "my timely death." 
31. Loaden, Used by S. oftener than laden. 
51. Stuck. The early eds. have " Strucke " or " Struck." The 



2o6 Notes [Act II 

emendation is due to Heath, and is favoured by the comparison 
of the swine to a quiver. For the allusion to the Parthian custom 
of shooting as they fled, cf. Cyinb. i. 6. 20 : " Or, like the Parthian, 
I shall flying fight." Uses — exercises. 

54. Lazily. The old eds. have " lastly," which is explained as 
= " worst of all ; " but the measure as well as the sense of the 
context favours Seward's emendation of "lazily." 

58. Mere. Absolute. Cf. 0th. ii. 2. 3 : " the mere perdition of 
the Turkish fleet," etc. 

63. Main goodness. Special good luck. 

64. Twined. The old eds. have " twyn'd " or " twin'd ; " but 
perhaps we should read " twinn'd," with Seward, Knight, Little- 
dale, and Herford, as that word was often spelled with one 71. See 
on i. I. 178 above. Weber, Dyce, Skeat, and Hudson have twin'^d, 

74. Conversation. Intercourse with others. 

91. Grave. Bury, destroy. The old eds. have "Crave," which 
Littledale defends. Grave is due to Dyce, and is adopted by 
Skeat, Hudson, and Herford. 

100. A 7?iore content. A greater content than there ; a common 
use of more. 

112. Record. The noun is often accented by Elizabethan writers 
on the last syllable. 

118. This garden, tic. The old eds. give this line to Arcite ; 
corrected by Seward. 

122. Forward. That is, go on with what you were saying. 
" Palamon had said above, * you shall hear me ; ' and now Arcite 
is eagerly waiting to hear the remainder of his speech. Palamon, 
engrossed in watching Emilia, pays little attention, and merely says 
* yes,' without adding more. Hence Arcite's repeated remonstrance 
below * Will you go forward, cousin ? ' And again he says, * Cousin ! 
how do you, sir ? why, Palamon ' — supposing, for the moment, that 
Palamon is seized with a fit of illness. Cf. iii. 5. 98 below " (Skeat). 

138. Gently. A trisyllable here. Cf. iv. I. in below. 

142. She locks her beauties in her bud again. Cf. Keats, St. 



Scene II] Notes 207 

Agnes'^ Eve: "As though a rose should shut, and be a bud 

again ; " a familiar poetic parallel. 

146. Can coi7ie near. Hudson changes near to "to.'* 
156-159. I will not^ etc. Cf. Z. Z. Z. iv. 3. 64: — 

" A woman I forswore ; but I will prove, 
Thou being a goddess, I forswore not thee. 
My vow was earthly, thou a heavenly love ; 
Thy grace being gain'd cures all disgrace in me." 

163. Mankind ! Accented on the first syllable ; as it is by S., 
except several times in 7'. of A. 

171, 172. If that will lose ye, etc. Hudson gives, without note 
or comment : — 

" If that will lose ye, farewell, Palamon ! I say 
Again, I love her; and, in loving her, maintain," etc. 

The addition of " her " in 172 was suggested by Walker, who would 
arrange thus : — 

" I say again 
I love her; and, in loving her, maintain," etc. 

191. If he be but one. "That is, if the enemy be but a single 
person. The * enemy,' in this instance, is Emilia. Arcite's reply 
is — suppose the enemy would prefer to fight with 7ne ; that is, 
suppose Emilia were to prefer me. Palamon rejoins that, in that 
case, Arcite would be free to love ; otherwise, he looks upon him 
as a villain " (Skeat). 

215. Enter Gaoler. In the old theatre the platform of the stage 
would be the garden, while the raised balcony at the back would be 
the interior of the prison, where Palamon and Arcite are, and where 
the Gaoler now enters. 

231. Apricock. Apricot ; the old spelling. Cf. M. N. D. iii. i. 
169, etc. 

261. Pelting. Paltry. See M, N. D, ii. i. 91, Rich. IL ii. I. 60, 
etc. 



2o8 Notes [Act II 

269. Morris ! That is, morris-dance. Cf. iii. 5 below, where 
one is introduced. 

Spalding remarks that " this scene, if it be Fletcher's, is among 
the very finest he ever wrote." Hickson says that "with all its 
beautiful poetry, it does not exhibit dramatic power." 

Scene III. — i. Banish^ dy etc. Cf. R, and J, iii. 3. 29 fol. and 
T. G. ofV, iii. I. 170 fol. 

12. Nor ^le'er. For the double negative, cf. iii. 3. 4 below. 

21 Another shape. That is, a disguise. On make me, cf. Oih* 
V. I. 4: "It makes us, or it mars us," etc. 

26. Have with ye, I '11 be with you ; a common idiom of the 
time. 

27. Play, That is, not work. 

31. Hold, Hold to our engagement. 

35. Ye know. The old eds. have " yet know ; " corrected by 
Seward. 

36. Domine, Schoolmaster ; not used by S. 

37. Keep touch. Keep his appointment ; a phrase of doubtful 
origin. Nicholson says that it probably came from the custom of 
shaking hands on a bargain or agreement. Cf. the old word hand- 
fast, 

38. Horn-book, The child's primer, which at first was a single 
leaf set in a frame of wood, and covered with horn to keep it from 
being soiled or torn. Cf. L, L, L, v. i. 49: " he teaches boys the 
horn-book." 

43. For our town. That is, for its credit or honour. 

44. Weavers ! Probably = singers here. For the reputation of 
weavers as singers, cf. T, N, ii. 3. 61 and I He7i. IV, ii. 4. 147. 

46. By any 7neans. By all means ; as in iii. 5. 135 below. For 
says the old eds. have " sees ; " corrected by Seward. 

48. Parlously, Amazingly ; a vulgar corruption of perilously, 
a, parlous in M, N, D, iii. i. 14, A. Y. L, iii. 2. 45, etc. 

49. Makes no cry. Makes no noise, amounts to nothing. 



Scene IV] Notes 209 

50. Tackle ! Equipments, things for the occasion. 

65. Trick 0* the hip. Trick in wrestUng. Skeat says : " The 
reference is not to the hip of the vanquished wrestler, as some 
think, but to that of the victor. If a wrestler can succeed in hitch- 
ing his hip in a certain way under his adversary's body, he may often 
succeed in throwing with almost irresistible violence. This is the 
* trick of the hip ' referred to here and by Shakespeare." Cf. M. of 
V. i. 3. 42, iv. I. 334, and 0th. ii. i. 314. For the use of vefigeance, 
cf. Cor. ii. 2. 6 : '' he's vengeance proud," etc. 

68. He roast eggs ! " A contemptuous expression, intimating 
the speaker's doubt as to Arcite's capacity even for cooking an 
Qgg. The phrase ' like an ill-roasted Qgg, all on one side ' is in 
A. Y. L. iii. 2. 38. It looks as if eggs were sometimes roasted, like 
apples, before the fire, and required turning at intervals. Ray 
gives the phrase * I have eggs on the spit ' as a common proverb, 
adding that it means * I am very busy. Eggs, if they be well 
roasted, require much turning.' Two more proverbs are * Set a fool 
to roast eggs, and a wise man to eat them ; ' and * There goes some 
reason to the roasting of eggs ' " (Skeat). Herford thinks that the 
reference is not to the proverbial care in roasting eggs, but is a hint 
that it was a "better employment for Arcite than wrestling." 

73. E^er Jleiv. The old eds. have " never flew," which may pos- 
sibly be what the author wrote. See on 12 above. 

76. Happiness. Good luck ; as very often in S. 

As Spalding says, " neither this scene nor the following have 
anything in them worthy of particular notice." 

Scene IV. — i. ^Tis odds. The odds are in favour of it; it is 
likely. Cf. Cymb. v. 2. 9. 

2. Affect. Love ; as in Much Ado, i. i . 298 and often. 

18. Coil. Ado, stir. Cf. Mtich Ado, iii. 3. 100, v. 2. 98, 
etc. 

20. Fairer spokeii. For the adverb, cf. Temp. iv. i. 31 : " Fairly 
spoke," etc. ; and for the participle, see on i. i. 180 above. 
rVVO NOBLE KINSMEN — I4 



2IO Notes [Act III 

Scene V. — 4. Allow. Approve, praise. Littledale quotes Web- 
ster, Westward Ho, iii. 4 : " they allow my wit for it extremely." 

7. Gave ?ne life, Hudson adopts Seward's conjecture of "my" 
for me, 

9. Proves you? That is, to be a gentleman. Sire is here a 
dissyllable ; likeyfr^j in v. i. 3 below. 

12. Deep cry, "Deep-mouthed" (7". of S, ind. I. 18) pack. 
Cf. Cor. iii. 3. 120, iv. 6. 148, 0th. ii. 3. 370, etc. 

16. Proper, Comely; as very often. 

24. Baser gar ?nents ! It will be borne in mind that Arcite is dis- 
guised as a countryman. 

26. Purchase, Win, gain ; as often. Cf. A, V. L, iii. 2. 36O5 
etc. 

51. To do observance, etc. Cf. M. TV. Z>. i. I. 167 : "To do ob- 
servance to a morn of May." 

65. Wise. Discreet. Cf. T, G. of V. iv. 2. 41, iv. 3. 13, etc. 

Scene VI. — Devils roar. Probably a relic of the old mysteries. 
Cf. Rich. Ill, iv. 4. 75, Hen. V. iv. 4. 75, etc. 

33. Patch, The old eds. have " path." The emendation is Dr. 
Ingleby's. Cf. Ham. iv. 4. 18. 

35. Whoo-btib. Hubbub. Cf. ^. 7^. iv. 4. 629 : " come in with 
a whoobub ; " the only instance of the word in S. 



ACT III 



Scene I. — 2. Laund. Lawn, glade. The old eds. have " land." 
Laund w2iS^ suggested by Dyce. Cf. 3 Hen. VI. iii. i. 2: "For 
through this laund anon the deer will come." Skeat cites Chau- 
cer, ICn. T, 833: "And to the launde he rydeth him ful ryghte." 
Several = separate ; as often. 

6. Buttons, Buds. Cf. Ham. i. 3. 40 ; the only instance of this 
sense in S. 



Scene I] Notes 21 1 

7. Knacks. Knick-knacks. Cf. W. T. iv. 4. 360, 439, M. N, D. 
i. I. 34, etc. 

10. Place, The old eds. have " pace ; " corrected by Seward. 

12. Eftsoons. Soon after ; used again in Per, v. I. 256. 

13. Chop. " Exchange, make an exchange. Arcite means, O, 
that I might, whilst thou art meditating, come between, soon after 
some cold or sober thought, and make an exchange, by changing 
those cold thoughts to thoughts of love ! " (Skeat). 

15. Lady Foi'tune. S. has the expression in A. V. L. ii. 7. 16, 
W, T. iv. 4. 51, and Per. iv. 4. 48. Cf. Temp. i. 2. 178: "boun- 
tiful Fortune, Now my dear lady." 

30. Bend in the stage-direction = doubles, clenches. See on 
V. 3. 42 below. 

36. Void'' St. The old eds. have "voydes; " corrected by Symp- 
son. 

37. Gentle token ! The mark or badge of gentle birth. 

40. Appoint77ient. Accoutrement, weapons. See on i. 4. 15 
above. 

42. Nor worth. Littledale conjectures " not worth," which may 
be right. 

43. House-clogs. That is, his fetters. 

44. Cozener. Cf. the similar play on cousi7t in I Hen. IV, i. 3. 
254, etc. 

45. As thou hast showed me feat! That is, in keeping with your 
behaviour. 

47. Your blazon. Your description. "The original sense of 
blason in Old French was simply a shield; then it came to mean a 
coat-of-arms, which is still the sense it has in French; then, in 
English only, it passed on to the sense of description of arms, and 
even to description in a general sense, as in Haiii. i. 5. 21, Much 
Ado, ii. I. 307" (Skeat). 

52. Skip the??i. Ignore their existence. 

54. Griefs, Grievances; as often. Cf. I ^<?«. /F. iv. 3. 42, 48, 
/. C. i. 3. 118, iv. 2. 42, etc. 



2 1 2 Notes [Act III 

58. Advertised, Accented on the second syllable ; as it is regu- 
larly in S. 

68. CompeWd. Accented on the first syllable because followed 
by a noun so accented. Cf. M. for M. ii. 4. 57: "I talk not of 
your soul; our compell'd sins," etc. 

On the passage, cf. Macb. v. 7. i : — 

" They have tied me to a stake ; I cannot fly, 
But, bear-like, I must fight the course," 

72. Quit 77ie of these cold gyves. Free me from these iron fet- 
ters. For quit, cf. Hen, V. iii. 5. 47, Hen. VI IL v. I. 70, etc.; 
and iox gyves, Cymb, v. 4. 14, Ham. iv. 7. 21, etc. 

74. Come before vie the^t, etc. Cf. Macb. iv. 3. 234 : — 

" Within my sword's length set him ; if he scape, 
Heaven forgive him too ! " 

83. With counsel of the night. When the approach of night 
tells me that I may safely do it. Skeat, vi^ho makes cou7isel — " as- 
sistance," considers it "rather a bold phrase; " but the transition 
from advice to assistance is an easy one. 

86. The smell 0^ the prison. This gives us a hint of the '* un- 
sanitary " condition of prisons in the poet's time. Skeat refers to 
iii. 3. 49, 51 below. 

%%. In plight ! In condition for the combat. Cf. T. and C. iii. 
2. 168: "To keep her constancy in plight," etc. 

89. Dares, The reading of the quarto, and, to my thinking, 
preferable to the " dare " of the folio and the modern editors 
(except Littledale and Herford). 

90. Business ? Changed by Dyce and Hudson to " baseness." 
Skeat has " nobly " for 7ioble. 

The meaning is, " Dares any one who shew^s himself so noble be 
capable of aught base? None, save Arcite, could be so; and 
therefore in proportion to the height of his generosity is the depth 
of his baseness" (Littledale). 

97. Musit, The early eds. have " Musicke " or " Musick; " 



Scene II] Notes 213 

corrected by Knight. Nares defines musit as ** the opening in a 
hedge through which a hare, or other beast of sport, is accustomed 
to pass." Cf. V, and A. 683 : — 

" The many musits through the which he goes 
Are like a labyrinth, to amaze his foes ; " 

where a hunted hare is referred to. Here the word is = hiding- 
place. 

loi. Bent brow. That is, a frowning or angry brow. Cf. 
I Hen, VI. V. 3. 34 : " See how the ugly wench doth bend her 
brows !" and 3 Z;^^;/. F7. v. 2. 19: "And who durst smile when 
Warwick bent his brow? " 

104. My stomachy etc. That is, if my stomach were not, etc. 
Skeat thinks that stomach is " probably — inclination, used much 
as we now m?>q palate ; the oil did not suit his palate and he could 
scarcely persuade himself to like it." The word may, however, be 
= resentment (cf. Lear, v. 3. 74, etc.), as some explain it. 

112. I^ve. The old eds. have " If; " corrected by Seward. 

114. Bleeding. For the figure, cf. Rich. //. i. i. 157, 2 IIe7t. IV. 
iv. I. 57, etc. 

Scene II. — i. Brake. The old eds. have " Beake " or " Beak; " 
corrected by Weber (the conjecture of Theobald). Sympson sug- 
gested "brook," and Seward reads "beck" (= brook). Cf. ii. 6. 
6 above. Skeat remarks: "Just above (iii. i. 30) we have — 
* Enter Palamon out of a bush^ And again below (iii. 6. 113) we 
have — * into your bush again ! ' We may compare also Arcite's 
expression — *your hawthorn-house ' (iii. i. 82) with Shakespeare's 
expression — *This green plot shall be our stage, this hawthorn- 
brake our tiring-house ' (J/. N. D. iii. 1.3), and again, * enter into 
that brake ' in the same scene, 77." 

5. But for one thing. Hudson reads "but one thing/' as ^'' for 
serves no purpose but to mar both sense and rhythm." The change 
does not improve the measure, and mars the sense by shifting the 
accent from one to thing. 



214 Notes [Act III 

7. Reck. The quarto has " wreake," as the word is sometimes 
spelled in the early eds. of S. So 7'eckless is sometimes spelled 
" wreakless." The verb Jaw is not found in S. 

19. Fed. The quarto has " feed." 

20. jBe bold to ring the belL You need not hesitate to toll the 
bell for him ; he is certainly dead. Hudson thinks the reference 
is probably to " the bell of the prison, which will be rung as an 
alarm-signal when Palamon is found to have escaped." 

21. AlVs char''d. The deed is done. For the noun chare (the 
Yankee *' chore"), cf. A. and C, iv. 15. 75, v. 2. 231 ; the only 
instances in S. Skeat says : " The present passage is particularly 
well illustrated by the old proverb, given in Hazlitt's collection, 
* That char is chared (that business is done), as the good wife said 
when she had hanged her husband.' In the Marriage of Wit and 
Science (Hazlitt's Old Plays, ii. 375), we have — 

' This char is char 'd well now, Ignorance, my son, 
Thou seest all this, how featly it is done.' 

We also find, in Beaumont and Fletcher, the spelling chewre ; as in 
Love's Cure, iii. 2 : * Here's two chewres chewr^d.'' " 

25. Mop^d. Moping, stupid. Cf. Teinp, v. i. 240, Hen. V. iii. 
7. 143, and Hafn. iii. 4. 81 ; the only instances in S. 

26, 27. Food took I none, etc. I follow the old eds. except in 
the pointing. Cf. iv. 3. 4 below. Sympson conjectured " 'cept 
some water." Seward filled up a supposed gap thus : — 

" Food took I none these two days, only sipt 
Some water, two nights I 've not clos'd my eyes," etc. 

Dyce (followed by Skeat and Hudson) reads : — 

" Food took I none these two days, once, indeed, 
I sipp'd some water; Fve not clos'd mine eyes," etc. 

Littledale says : " It is possible that some words have dropped 
out ; guessing can avail little in such a case." 



Scene II] Notes 215 

28. Brine. The old eds. have " bine; " corrected by Tonson. 
Cf. i. 3. 22 above. 

30. Lest I should d^'own^ etc. "The enumeration of deaths should 
be noticed, and their connection with insanity " (Littledale). Cf. 
i. I. 142 and iv. 3. 31 below ; also Temp. iii. 3. 58. 

31. State of nature. Natural reasoning power. Cf. Lear, i. 
4. 290 and Afacb. i. 3. 140. 

Together, Apparently = altogether ; otherwise it seems a strange 
word here. It is strange that somebody has not suggested "fall 
together" (= collapse). 

33. Next. Nearest. Cf. W, T. iii. 3.129: " home, home, the 
next way ! " etc. 

35. Crickets . . . screech-owl. Cf. Afacb. ii. 2. 16: "I heard 
the owl scream and the crickets cry." 

36. All offices are done, etc. " All the duties of the day and 
night are done, and a new day is beginning; I alone have failed to 
give Palamon the file I brought for him, which might have saved 
him" (Skeat). 

Spalding, who assigns this scene (with all the underplot) to 
Fletcher, says that there is "some pathos in several parts of the 
soliloquy, but little vigour in the expression, or novelty in the 
thought?." Hickson remarks : " It is to this scene that we refer 
by anticipation as giving an instance of Shakespeare's judgment. 
It can hardly be said to explain any necessary circumstance ; . . . 
but it supplies the due gradation between a mind diseased and 
madness; and in connection with another scene at which we shall 
shortly arrive, it displays a depth of insight into the psychological 
character of this state only exceeded by Shakespeare himself, in 
Lear. Let our readers observe in particular the unselfish anxiety 
for Palamon's safety, and her subsequent terror at her own dis- 
ordered senses. The introduction of the popular notion that wild 
beasts* have a sense to know a man unarm'd ' is quite a Shake- 
spearian illustration; and we do not know an instance of finer draw- 
ing than this of her imagination painting, as absolute reality, the 



2 1 6 Notes [Act III 

subject of her first fear. From this conviction (of Palamon's death) 
we come naturally to the concluding lines, beyond which the next 
step is madness." 

Scene III. — 6. Beastly. Like a beast. Cf. Cymb. iii. 3.40: 
** We are beastly, subtle as the fox for prey," etc. For the adverbial 
use, cf. A. afid C. i. 5. 50 : *' was beastly dumb'd "; Cy??ib. v. 3. 27 ; 
" which you shun beastly," etc. 

25. Your hu7iger needs no sauce. Alluding to the familiar 
proverb, "Hunger is the best sauce; " which is found in French 
and Italian, and even in Cicero (^De Finibus, ii.), where it is as- 
cribed to Socrates. 




Virginal (From an Old Engraving) 

34. Virginals ? " A keyed instrument, somewhat like a small 
pianoforte, probably so called because used by young girls " (Nares). 
It was sometimes called a pair of virginals ; as in Dekker's GuVs 
Hornbooke : " leap up and down like the nimble jacks of a pair 
of virginals." Cf. "a pair of organs" (= an organ), "a pair of 



Scene IV] Notes 217 

steps " (= a flight of any length), etc. The noun is not used by S. 
(this scene is not his), but virginalling occurs in W. T. i. 2. 125. 

41. Thereby hangs a tale, Cf. M, W. i. 4. 159, T. of S. iv. i. 60, 
A, v. L. ii. 7. 28, etc. 

46. Break. That is, break our agreement. See 13 fol. 

51. Fear jne not. Fear not for me. Qi.AL for M. iv. i. 70, etc. 

53. Keep touch. See on ii. 3. 37 above. 

"This is one of those scenes by the introduction of which 
Fletcher succeeded in spoiling a good play" (Littledale). Spal- 
ding says : " In most respects the scene is not very characteristic of 
either writer, but leans towards Fletcher ; and one argument for 
him might be drawn from an interchange of sarcasms between the 
two kinsmen, in which they retort on each other former amorous 
adventures : such a dialogue is quite like Fletcher's men of gaiety ; 
and needless degradation of his principal characters is a fault of 
which Shakespeare is not guilty." 

Hickson says : " The 3d scene, without any doubt, is by Fletcher. 
Arcite brings ' food and files ' to Palamon ; and, after some patter 
of early reminiscences between them utterly out of character, they 
separate." 

Scene IV. — 2. Aglets. "Properly, tags to laces, or (as here) 
the bright tops or heads of such tags" (Skeat); or "spangles" 
(Littledale). Coles {Latin Diet.) gives both "An Aglet (tag of a 
point), (iramenttim ligidce,^'' and also "An Aglet (a little plate of 
metal), Bractea, Bracteola.^^ Cf. Spenser, F. Q. ii. 3. 26: — 

" yclad, for heat of scorching aire, 
All in a silken camus lilly-white, 
Purfled upon with many a folded plight, 
Which all above besprinckled was throughout 
With golden aygulets, that glistred bright, 
Like twinckling starres." 

See also T. of S. i. 2. 79 : " an aglet baby ; " that is, a small 
figure on a fan. 



21 8 Notes [Act III 

9. Run. The early eds. have " Vpon " or " Upon." Seward 
reads " Up with," and Weber (followed by Dyce and Hudson) 
"Spoom" (Theobald had suggested "Spoon"), which they ex- 
plain as = " let her spoom." Run is the emendation of Skeat, 
who says : " The old text has * Upon her,' where the first two letters 
are clearly due to the repetition of the Up of the next line ; and 
the most likely word is one which shall be a short monosyllable, 
ending with n. Nearly all the modern editions read Spoom her, 
from a conjecture of Weber's, founded on the fact that spoom occurs 
in Beaumont and Fletcher's Double Marriage, ii. I ; but the word 
spoom, in that passage, is an intransitive verb, meaning to sail 
steadily, and is a mere variation, apparently, of spu?ne (foam), as if 
the sense were to throw up foam. Nares remarks : * an attempt 
has been made to introduce spoom into the Two Noble Kinsmen, 
iii. 4, but with small critical judgment.' " 

10. Course. A name applied to the large lower sails of a ship. 
See Temp. i. i. 53: "Set her two comses;" that is, the foresail 
and mainsail, which, in the same scene, is called the main-course. 

14. Carack. A large ship. Cf. C. of E, iii. 2. 140 and 0th. i. 2. 
50. Cotgrave has " Carraque, the huge ship termed a CarrickeP 
Cf. Spanish carraca, Italian caracca. 

15. Pig77iies, "A fabulous people, said to be of the height of a 
pygme (TruyyitT^), or 13^ inches, mentioned by Homer {Iliad, iii. 5) 
as dwelling on the shores of Ocean, and at times subject to attacks 
by cranes. Dwarfs have often been credited with supernatural 
powers, especially in Northern mythology" (Skeat). Cf. Much 
Ado, ii. I. 278. 

1 7. Trussed up. Literally, tied up, like a bundle or pack ; but 
often used, as here, for execution by hanging. Cf. Beaumont and 
Fletcher, Little Fre^ich Lawyer, v. 3 : — 

" I have been provost-marshal twenty years, 
And have truss 'd up a thousand of these rascals." 

Harrison, in his Description of England, refers to the highway- 



Scene V] Notes 1 1 9 

men of the time as often being " trussed up in a Tyburn tippet ; " 
alluding to the gallows at Tyburn. 

S. has truss only in 2 He7t,IV, iii. 2. 350, where it means to 
pack. 

19. This Song may have been part of an old ballad, Skeat com- 
pares The Nut-browTt Maid: — 

" Lo yet, before, ye must do more, 
Yf ye wyll go with me : 
As cut your here up by your ere, 
Your kyrtel by the kne." 

22. He'^s, A vulgar contraction of he shall^ still in use in the 
North of England. Cf. thou ^s = thou shalt, in R. and J. i. 3. 9, etc. 

For cut as applied to a docked horse, cf. i Hen, IV. ii. i. 6, 
ii. 4. 215, and T. N. ii. 3. 203 ; also v. 2. 44 below. 

25. O for a prick now^ etc. Allusions to the old idea that the 
nightingale presses her breast against a thorn while singing are 
very common in the poets. Cf. P. /•. 379 : — 

" Everything did banish moan, 
Save the nightingale alone ; 
She, poor bird, as all forlorn, 
Lean'd her breast up-till a thorn, 
And there sung the dolefuU'st ditty," etc. 

Hickson says of this scene : " there is some affectation of nautical 
language (why, Heaven only knows), and the rest is mere incohe- 
rent nonsense." Spalding has nothing of importance to say about it. 

Scene V. — The Bavian. A character sometimes introduced 
into the morris-dance, dressed up as a baboon. He performed 
some pantomimic tumbling, with occasional barking like a dog. 
Cf. 33-37 below. 

2. Tediosity and disensanity are the pedantic coinage of the 
Schoolmaster. Littledale compares The Spanish CuratCy iii. 2 : — 



220 Notes [Act III 

" I have taught these twenty years, 
Preach'd spoonmeat to ye, that a child might swallow, 
Yet ye are blockheads still." 

5. Plufn-broth. Broth with plums in it. Cf. plum-porridge, i. 3. 
67 above. 

8. Prize, A coarse woollen cloth (cf. M, W. v. 5. 146 and O//1, 
ii. I. 127), 2&jane was a cheap cotton one. For the latter the old 
eds. have " jave ; " corrected by Dyce. 

II. Medius fidius. "An old Latin oath, apparently short for 
me dius Fidius adiuvet, may the divine P'idius help me ! \i fiditis 
stands for Jilius, then it means, may the divine son of Jupiter help 
me ! The reference, in that case, is most likely to the god Hercu- 
les" (Skeat). 

18. Meleager, The hero who slew the monstrous boar in the 
woods of Calydon. Cf. 2 Hen. VI. i. i. 235. 

21. Trace. A term in dancing. Littledale quotes several in- 
stances of the noun ; as Spenser, Shep. KaL June : " trimly trod- 
den traces ; " Handful of Pleasant Delites : " Yet daunceth on the 
trace," etc. Cf. the verb (= walk, pace) in Much Ado, iii. i. 16 
and M. N. D. ii. i. 25. 

23. Taborer 9 Drummer ; the tabor being a small drum (cf. 
Temp. iv. i. 175, Much Ado, ii. 3. 15, W. T. iv. 4. 183, etc.) 
S. has taborer only in Temp. iii. 2. 160. 

29. Deliver ly. Nimbly. Under the adjective, Nares quotes 
Holinshed : " nimble, leane, and deliver men ; " and, again : " all 
of them being tall, quicke, and deliver persons," etc. 

30. Favour. Apparently a token associated with the dance, as 
nowadays in certain famihar forms thereof. 

38. Quousque tande7n ? How long ? evidently from Cicero's ist 
Oration against Catiline : " Quousque tandem abutere, Catilina, 
patientia nostra ?" 

41. Wash\i atile. Laboured in vain. "It is a Latin proverb, 
laterem lavare, and occurs in Terence, Phor??tio, i. 4. 9. There is 
also a proverb in Greek, wXivdovs wXvveLPy to wash bricks" (Skeat). 



Scene V] NoteS 221 

42. Fatuus. Foolish (Latin). 

43. Hilding. A term of contempt ; used of both sexes. Cf. 
T. of S. ii. I. 26: "For shame, thou hilding;" A. W. iii. 6. 4: 
** If your lordship find him not a hilding, hold me no more in your 
respect," etc. It is used as an adjective in 2 Hen. JV.\. i. 57 and 
Hen. V, iv. 2. 29. Piece is here contemptuous ; as in T. and C. 
iv. I. 62, T. A,\. I. 309, etc. 

45. Sei7ipster. Sempstress ; which word has a double feminine 
affix, -star being originally feminine, as it still is in spinster, Cf. 
the old play of The Roaring Girl (quoted by Nares) : — 

" S. A sempster speak with me, sayst thou ? 
N, Yes, sir, she 's there viva voce'' 

48. Wine and bread. That is, the sacrament. Cf. R. and J. iii. 
5. 177: "God's bread! it makes me mad." 

Break — break her promise. Cf. the mercantile use ; as in 
M, of V. iii. I. 120, etc. 

49. An eel and woman, etc. Skeat says: "In Hazlitt's Collection 
of Proverbs we find ' There is as much hold of his words as of a wet 
eel by the tail. ' Who the * learned poet ' is, I cannot say. Plautus 
{Pseudolus, ii. 4. 56) has * anguilla est, elabitur.' " 

53. Afire-ill take her ! " Pox take her !" (Nares). CLT.ofA. 
iv. 3. 142. Seward reads " feril" (= ferule), and Skeat "wildfire." 
Herford prints " fire ill." 

58. Frampal ! Pettish, perverse. We find the form fra??ipold 
in M. W. ii. 2. 94 (Mrs. Quickly's speech). 

60. Alow. Low down ; " possibly referring to the appearance 
of a ship on the horizon " (Skeat). Quite as likely, as Littledale 
suggests, it is a mere exclamation. 

67. / come. The early eds. omit /, which was supplied by 
Johnson. 

68. Howlet. Owlet ; as in Macb. iv. I. 17, where most modern 
eds. have " owlet." 

74. /' the nick. That is, in the nick of time. 



222 Notes [Act III 

80. Tell ten. Count ten. " It was a trial of idiocy to make the 
person count his fingers'^ (Weber). For tell, cf. v. 4. 56 below. 
Cf. teller (one who counts money in a bank), tell one^s beads, all 
told (counted), etc. 

For btiz as an interjection of impatience when one is about to 
tell what is already known, cf. Ham. ii. 2. 412. 

87. Qui passa. Here passes (Italian) ; unexplained in this 
connection. It may be the contracted name of some old tune. 
The bells are those of the morris-dancers. For the bones as instru- 
ments of music, cf. M, N, D, iv. i. 32 : " the tongs and the bones." 

88. To a peace, " To be quiet " (Skeat) ; or, perhaps, to an 
alliance with us, to joining our dance (Littledale). Mason would 
read " a place," and Weber suggests " a pace " (= a dance). 

89. Et opus exegi, etc. P>om Ovid, Met, xv. 871 : — 

" lamque opus exegi, quod nee lovis ira nee ignes 
Nee poterit ferrum nee edax abolere vetustas." 

loi. A cold beginning, A play on hail, Cf. Z. L. L. v. 2. 339. 
Walker cites Dekker, Old For tuna tus : — 

" Andelocia. Brother, all hail ! 
Shadow. There 's a rattling salutation." 

Littledale adds, from The Faithful Friends, iii. 2 : — 

'• Pergamus. All hail ! 
Learchus. He begins to storm already." 

and Cleveland, A zealous Discourse between the Person of the Par- 
ish and Tabitha : — 

" Hail, Sister, to your snowy Breast — 
The Word permitteth us to jeast," etc. 

104. Distinguish villager. Mark as villagers or peasants. 
106. Rable. The pedagogue's rhyming variation of rabble, as 
choris of chorus. So in 113 he accents machine on the first syllable. 
112. Ferula. Skeat says: " It was made of wood and shaped 



Scene V] Notes 223 

like a battledore, but with the bat much diminished, so as to be 
adapted for administering a severe pat on the palm of the victim's 
hand. In a picture called *The Schoolmaster,' by Gerard Douw, 
in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, it will be seen that the 
master holds 2l ferula in his left hand, ready for use." 

114. For the alliteration, cf. M. N, D. v. i. 147. 

118. Mickle. Much, great. Cf. R. and J. ii. 3. 15, C, of E. iii. 
I. 45, etc. 

120. Morris. Cf. Hen. V. ii. 4. 25: "a Whitsun-morris." 

123. This tenor. To this tenor, to this effect. 

124. Penner. A pen-case, a case for holding pens (Nares) ; 
used here, of course, as a symbol for what he has permed. 

125. The Lord of May, tic. Skeat remarks: "We have here 
a list of the characters in the Morris-dance — namely, the Lord 
of May, the Lady of May (also called Queen of May, or Maid 
Marian), the Chambermaid, the Servingman, the Host, the Hostess, 
etc. ; to which should be added the Bavian or Tumbler, and the 
Clown or Jester, who was seldom absent from such festivities. By 
putting together the account in this part of the scene and the pre- 
ceding part, we may make out the list of the twelve principal char- 
acters, six of each sex, with the persons who took the parts : — 

^^ Male. I. Lord of May; 2. Servingman; 3. Host; 4. Clown; 
5. Bavian ; 6. Taborer. 

" Female. 7. Lady of May ; 8. Chambermaid ; 9. Hostess ; 
10. II. 12. Dancers. 

"The parts may be thus distributed among the actors: — 

" Male. I. 2. 3. 4. First, Second, Third, and Fourth Countrymen ; 
5. A fifth Countryman ; 6. A man named Timothy. 

" Female. 7. Friz ; 8. Gaoler's Daughter, taking the place of 
Cicely (for it is clearly the Second Countryman's partner who failed 
to appear) ; 9. Maudlin; 10. Luce; 1 1. Barbary ; 12. Nell. 

" In Beaumont and Fletcher's Kiiight of the Burning Pestle, iv. 5, 
we have ' Enter Ralph, dressed as a May-lord ; ' he describes him- 
self as having a * gilded staff, and crossed scarf.' '* 



224 Notes [Act III 

127. Silent hanging. Tapestry, behind which to hide. Silent 
may be = not rustling. Cf. M, IV. iii. 3. 97, Aluch Ado, i. 3. 63, 
K. John. iv. i. 2, //a;//, ii. 2. 163, iii. 3. 28, iv. i. 9, etc. 

128. Welco7nes. Changed by most editors to "welcome," 
as Informs below to " Inform." Littledale remarks: "With Mr. 
Skeat, I have left this passage as it stands in the old eds., objec- 
tions to the graiiujiar seeming hypercritical, and to a student of 
Dr. Abbott's Grammar almost absurd." Their is also generally 
changed to " his ; " but the plural is implied in traveller. 

131. Beast-eating. Mason conjectures "beef-eating." It is = 
eating like a beast. The Fool and the Baviaji are of course the 
same character. See on 125 above. 

137. Intrate^filii^ etc. Enter sons, etc. The old eds. give this 
to " Pir.^ " but Colman is clearly right in transferring it to Gerrold. 

139. Ye with. The old eds. have "thee with ; " corrected by 
Seward. 

156. Lets. Hindrances. Cf. R. of L. ;^2P: "these lets attend 
the time," etc. 

157. Doucets I " The testes of a deer ; " a word not used by S., 
but often by Fletcher and Jonson. 

Spalding refers to " the learned and high-fantastical schoolmaster 
Gerrold " as " a personage who has the pedantry of Shakespeare's 
Holofernes, without one solitary spark of his humour." Hickson 
says that the scene is " not only imitation, but the imitation of a 
young and inexperienced writer." 

Scene VI. — 10. Out-dure. Outlast, endure ; printed as two 
words in the quarto. S. does not use it. 

22. Beneficial. Beneficent ; as in C. ^^5". i. I. 152, Hen. VIII. 
i. I. 56, etc. 

24. Quit. Requite ; as often in S. Cf. v. 4. 35 below. 

30. Like meeti^ig of two tides. Spalding notes Fletcher's " want 
of distinctness in grasping images, and inability to see fully either 
their picturesque or their poetical relations ; " in illustration of 



Scene VI] Notes 225 

which he quotes this passage and 83 fol. below : " When I saw you 
charge first," etc. 

59. Grand-guard ? A piece of defensive armour, of which the 
best description that I have seen is in Meyrick's Ancient Armour 
(quoted by Dyce): "It has over the breast, for the purpose of 
justing, what was called the grand-garde^ which is screwed on by 
three nuts, and protects the left side, the edge of the breast, and 
the left shoulder." 

82. Virtue. Valour (the Latin virtus). Cf. Cor. i. I. 41, ii. 2. 
88, etc. 

87. Strait. Tight; as in Hen. V. iii. 7. 57: "your strait 
strossers," etc. Cf. 55: "Do I pinch you?" 

90. Hold it. Think it, consider it. In 92 hold is = hold out, 
"hold its own." 

106. For none but such, etc. Seward remarks : " Our scene lies 
rather in the land of knight-errantry than of Athens ; our authors 
follow Chaucer, and dress their heroes after the manners of his age, 
when trials by the sword were thought just, and the conquered 
always supposed guilty and held infamous." 

112. Safety. The early eds. have "safely;" corrected by 
Seward. 

131. Fears me. Frightens me. See M. of V. ii. i. 9, K, John, 
iv. I. 7, etc. 

133. Have at thy life ! The usual exclamation of warning. 

147. Thine own. The early eds. have "this owne " or "this 
own;" corrected by Dyce. For the accent of edict, cf. 170 
below. 

161. Soon. Easy, ready. 

162. And no more mov'^d. And I am no more moved than you 
would be in giving the order. Where = whereas ; as often. 

177. Thy cousiti's soul. Referring to Hercules. See on i. i. 66 
above. 

192. Kill. The old reading, changed by some to "kills." It 
is one of many similar examples of the " confusion of proximity." 

TWO NOBLE KINSMEN — 1 5 



226 Notes [Act III 

217. Right, Downright, true ; not wholly obsolete in our day, 
at least in our Southern States. 

228. Bow not Do not try to bend or bring down. Cf. 2 Hen. 
IV, iii. I. 73: "necessity so bow'd the state," etc. 

238. Fail, The old eds. have " fall," which Littledale retains. 
He quotes Dr. Ingleby, who says : " Cf. 274 below : * Let it not fall 
again, sir.' These are remarkable instances of the use of this 
intransitive verb as a synonym oi fail. . . . Fall, of course, is the 
opposite of succeed. Now our word for this \s fail. Cf. Sir John 
Oldcastle : * Alas! poor rebels, there your aid must fall.' There is 
also one example in The London Prodigal, and two in Isaiah — 
xxxi. 3 and lix. 14, 15." 

242. Na7?ie^s opinion. The reputation of my name. The early 
eds. have " name ; opinion." The correction was suggested by 
Theobald, and is adopted by most of the editors. Littledale reads 
"name, opinion ! " and says : ^^ opinion is emphatic, and is used 
here (as again by Fletcher) in the sense of notoriety^ disrepute, 
Cf. Thierry and Theodoret, ii. 2 : — 

' my fair reputation, 
If I thrust into crowds, and seek occasions, 
Suffers opinion.' " 

Dyce points the passage thus : — 

'• Think how you maim your honour 
(For now I am set a-begging, sir, I am deaf 
To all but your compassion) ; how their lives 
Might breed the ruin of my name's opinion ! " 

Skeat says: "This can only mean — Think how you maim your 
honour ; (for now that I begin to beg, I am deaf to all but your 
pity) ; think how their lives, etc. But this makes no sense, and 
can only be made into sense by altering lives into deaths ; and even 
then it is not clear why their deaths should damage her good name, 
at any rate in her own estimation. I take the sentence to mean 



Scene VI] Notes 227 

something very different — namely, Think how you maim your 
honour! [After which there is a pause ; and then a new thought 
arises.] For now that I have begun to beg, sir, I am deaf to all 
but your compassion ; (I am deaf to the thought) how^ their lives 
may bring about the loss of my reputation. That this is clearly 
right, may be seen from a perusal of 220-226." It seems to me 
that this is the general idea of the passage, but that it is more 
simply and directly brought out by the pointing in the text (given, 
without comment, by Hudson), which makes How their lives^ etc. 
a contemptuous or indignant exclamation, referring to what The- 
seus has said in 220-226. 

244. Prout. The early eds. have " proyne " or "proyn;" 
changed by later editors to "prune" (of which it is an old form) 
until Dyce restored it as p7'oin. Littledale cites examples of 
it from Jonson, Milton (^Co77ius^ 378)> Gascoigne, and Bacon 
(^Essay 50). 

248. That ever lov'd. Dyce and Hudson adopt Walker's con- 
jecture of " lov'd them," which is in keeping with " the Fletcherian 
rhythm," but unnecessary. 

251. Woe worth me. Woe be to me. Skeat remarks: "The 
Anglo-Saxon verb weordian, to become, cognate with the German 
werden, once in very common use, now survives only in such phrases 
as * woe worth thee,' or *woe worth the day.' " 

258. Cut a-pieces. Cf. Hen. VIII. v. 4. 80 : " torn a-pieces." 

272. Make death a devil. " Though you should make death as 
formidable as a devil" (Littledale). Skeat considers the expres- 
sion " obscure," and suggests that it means " I will turn death into 
a horrible monster ; " but Littledale is clearly right. Herford 
says : " make death a fiendish punishment." 

276. To your husbajid? For your husband. Cf. y. C, iii. I. 143: 
" I know that we shall have him well to friend ; " Rich. II. iv. i. 
306: "I have a king here to my flatterer ; " also Matthew, iii. 9, 
Luke, iii. 8, etc. 

284. From that mouth. By a sentence pronounced by her. 



228 Notes [Act III 

295. Pyramid. Apparently =////^r in the same sentence. 
Chaucer mentions two stakes^ one at each side of the Hsts. 

Whether, Which of the two. Cf. iv. 2. 48 below; dXso Matthew, 
xxi. 31, xxiii. 19. 

299. And all his friends. Skeat remarks here : ** Some readers 
have expressed surprise at the apparently strange doom of Theseus, 
in decreeing death not only to the principal, but to *all his friends,' 
if worsted in the combat. Chaucer does not, it is true, go so far as 
this ; but it was quite in accordance with the spirit of the age even 
in Fletcher's time. Seward's note on the subject is much to the 
purpose : * As to the probability of their procuring each three 
seconds upon such odd terms, it may shock us to suppose any such 
gallant idiots ; but even so low as our authors' age it was reckoned 
cowardice to refuse any man, even a stranger, to be a second in 
almost any duel whatever, of which there is a most inimitable bur- 
lesque in [Beaumont and Fletcher's play of] The Little Frejich 
Lawyer, Mankind were mad after knight-errantry ; and the 
reader must catch a little of the spirit himself, or he '11 lose a 
great part of the beauties of this play ; he must kindle with the 
flames of military glory, think life a small stake to hazard in such 
a combat, and death desirable to the conquered as a refuge from 
shame.' In Beaumont and Fletcher's play of The Lover'' s Progress, 
ii. 3, the seconds fight as well as the principals. Perhaps the most 
striking instance is afforded by the ferocious duel fought in Ken- 
sington Gardens, on the 15th of November, 1712; in which not 
only the principals. Lord Mohun and the Duke of Hamilton, were 
both killed, but the seconds fought with tierce hatred, though inter- 
rupted before either of them was slain. See Chambers's Book of 
Days, ii. 583." 

304. Miscarry. Perish. Cf. T, N. iii. 4. 70, K. John, v. 4. 3, 
etc. See also v. 3. loi below. 

Spalding says that this scene " is a spirited and excellent one ; 
but its tone is Fletcher's, not Shakespeare's." Hickson considers it 
"of a much higher character than either of the preceding scenes." 



Scene I] NoteS 22^ 



ACT IV 

Scene I. — 4. Business, Here a trisyllable. See p. 171 above. 

II. Compassion. A quadrisyllable. 

14. That I hope. So that I hope; a common ellipsis. 

16. Scape. Not to be printed "'scape," as by Knight, Hudson, 
and others. It is often found in prose. Cf. state and estate, strange 
and estrange , etc. 

35. Where did she sleep? The early eds. have "When" for 
Where, which was suggested by Dyce. 

37. Mi7td her. Think of her, call her to mind. Cf. Hen. V. iv. 
chor. 53 : " Minding true things by what their mockeries be." 

41. Innocent. Idiot. See on i. 3. 79 above. 

45. Not right? Not sane, not in her right mind. Littledale says 
that " the expression is still heard in Ireland in this sense." It is 
also common enough in this country. 

48. You have told. The early eds. omit have, which Seward 
supplied. 

55. Attendi7tg. Watching for, w^aiting for ; as not infrequently. 

58. Smallness. Cf. T. N. i. 4. 32 : — 

"thy small pipe 
Is as the maiden's organ, shrill and sound ; " 

and M, W. i. i. 49 : " speaks small like a woman." 

60. I/is. Its ; as often before its came into general use. See 
on i. I. 154 above. 

64. Glade. Sometimes = an open track in the wood, as here 
one cut through the reeds. 

71. Bevy. Cf. Hen. VIII. i. 4. 4: "In all this noble bevy," 
etc. Wedgwood quotes Florio : " Beva, a drinking ; a bevy, as 
of pheasants." 

75. Aiitic. An antique dance, a quaint dance. Antick and 
antique are used interchangeably in the early eds. of S. 

80. Willow^ willow, willow. For this old song, see 0th. iv. 3. 



230 Notes [Act IV 

28 fol. S. has there " adapted " an old ballad, which may be 
found in Percy's Keliques, The original is a man's song, entitled 
" A Lover's Complaint, being forsaken of his Love ; " and in 
making it a woman's song the poet has varied its diction some- 
what. 

89. Of rushes. Alluding to the rush-rings used in mock- 
marriages. Cf. A, W. ii. 2. 24 : " Tib's rush for Tom's forefinger." 

90. Posies. Short mottoes, often inscribed on rings, knives, etc. 
Cf. M. of V.w. I. 148 and Ham. iii. 2. 162. 

91. Lose. The old eds. have "loose" (as in 77 above) ; but it 
is only an old spelling for lose. 

107. The B^'oom. A very popular old song. Weber quotes it 
from an old interlude thus : — 

" Brome, brome on hill, 
The gentle brome on hill, hill : 
Brome, brome on Hive hill," etc. 

108. Bonny Robin, Cf. Ham. iv. 5. 187: "For bonny sweet 
Robin is all my joy." The song is found in William Ballet's Lute 
Book, and in many other books and manuscripts of the time. 
Elson (6*. in Music) gives the music of it, as he does of many of 
the songs introduced or mentioned by the dramatist. 

For the tailor making a weddi7ig-gown, cf. 2 Hen. IV. iii. 2. 160 
("a woman's tailor") and T, of S. iv. 3. 59 fol. 

111. Rarely. Early; the reading of the old eds., changed by 
Weber and others to " rearly," which is only another spelling of 
the word. Halliwell (^Archaic Diet.) gives r^-^r^ = early, as a 
Devonshire word. 

112. Minstrels. A trisyllable. Cf tacklijigva 135 below. 

113. O fair, O siveet, etc. Dyce notes that among " Certaine 
Sonets" at the end of Sidney's Arcadia, ed. 1598, p. 474, we find 
one beginning " Oh faire, O sweet, when I do looke on thee," etc. 

118. Meaiis. The early eds. have " meane ; " corrected by 
Colman. In the next line they have " For " for Far, which is 
found in Tonson. 



Scene II] Notes 23 1 

136. Weigh. That is, weigh anchor. For cheer ly = chtexWy, 
cf. Temp. i. i. 29: " Cheerly, good hearts! " 

137. Ozvgh, owgh, owgh. "Obviously intended to represent the 
sounds uttered by sailors while weighing the anchor. The Gaoler 
and his friends humour the daughter by pretending to do as she 
wishes them. When the anchor is supposed to be weighed, they 
say V is up /" (Skeat). 

138. Top. Raise or tighten. "The bowling ox bowline is used 
to keep the weather-edge of a square sail tight forward, when the 
ship is close-hauled" (Skeat). Cf. Per. iii. i. 43. 

141. What kejin^st thou? What do you descry? In the reply 
there may be a play on wood or wode = mad. Cf. AI. N'. D. ii. i. 
192 : "And here am I, and wode within this wood." 

Spalding remarks : " The 4th act may safely be pronounced 
wholly Fletcher's. All of it, except one scene, is taken up by the 
episodical adventures of the Gaoler's Daughter ; and, while much 
of it is poetical, it wants the force and originality, and, indeed, all 
the prominent features of Shakespeare's manner, either of thought, 
illustration, or expression." Hickson says that the Gaoler's Daugh- 
ter is not, as some have asserted, a copy of Ophelia. " The descrip- 
tion in this scene has a certain resemblance to the circumstances 
of the death of Ophelia, and was probably written with that scene 
in view. It has no reference whatever to the character of the 
Gaoler's Daughter, and it is the only circumstance in the whole 
play common to her and to Ophelia." 

Scene II. — 16. Jove. The early eds. have "Love ; " corrected 
by Seward. 

It is strange, as Littledale notes, that Dyce and Skeat (and Hud- 
son may be added) follow Mason in making such another refer to 
smile (implied in smiliftg)^ and not to eye, as it clearly does. 

18. Constellation. The Greeks identified the zodiacal constella- 
tion Aquarius with Ganymede. 

21. Pelops* shoulder ! "Tantalus, the favourite of the gods, once 



232 Notes [Act IV 

invited them to a repast, and on that occasion killed his own son 
Pelops, and having boiled him, set the flesh before them that they 
might eat it. But the immortal gods, knowing what it was, did not 
touch it ; Demeter alone, being absorbed by grief for her lost 
daughter, consumed the shoulder of Pelops. Hereupon the gods 
ordered Hermes to put the limbs of Pelops into a cauldron, and 
thereby restore him to life. When the process was over, Clotho 
took him out of the cauldron, and as the shoulder consumed by 
Demeter was wanting, the goddess supplied its place by one made 
of ivory ; his descendants (the Pelopidae) as a mark of their origin, 
were believed to have one shoulder as white as ivory " (Smith's 
Classical Did.). 

Fame and Honotcr^ etc. Skeat compares Beaumont and Fletcher, 
Philaster, iv. 4 : — 

" Place me, some god, upon a pyramis 
Higher than hills of earth, and lend a voice 
Loud as your thunder to me, that from thence 
I may discourse to all the undervvorld 
The worth that dwells in him ! " 

27. Swarth. Swarthy. The word occurs in T, A. ii. 3. 72. For 
swartf see C of £, iii. 2. 104 and K. John, iii. i. 46. 

35. Lewdly. Wickedly; as in 2 Hen. VI. ii. i. 167. 

38. These the eyes. The reading of the quarto, which Skeat 
retains. The editors generally change the to "thy," as the folio 
does ; but Emilia is supposed to be looking at the portrait. 

44. A changeling. Referring to the old notion that the fairies 
would steal beautiful babies, and leave ugly elves in their place. 
Cf. M. N. D. ii. I. 23, 120, iv. i. 64, W. 7". iii. 3. 122, iv. 4. 705, etc. 
See also Spenser, F. Q. i. 10. 65 : — 

•' From thence a Faery thee unweeting reft, 
There as thou slepst in tender swadling band ; 
And her base Elfin brood there for thee left : 
Such, men do Chaungelings call, so chaung'd by Faeries theft ; " 



Scene II] Notes 233 

and Drayton, Nymphidia . — 

" These when a child haps to be got, 
Which after proves an idiot, 
When folk perceive it thriveth not, 

The fault therein to smother, 
Some silly doting brainless calf, 
That understands things by the half, 
Says that the Fairy left this aulf, 
And took away the other." 

For the contemptuous use oi gipsy ^ of. R, and J. ii. 4. 44: " Dido 
a dowdy, Cleopatra a gipsy," etc. 
45. Sotted. Besotted, infatuated. 

48. Whether. Which of the two ; as in iii. 6. 295 above. 

49. NoTd) if my sister, etc. And now, if my sister had asked me, 
I should have said I was more inclined to Palamon. 

52. Faftcy. Love ; as in v. 3. 103 and v. 4. 118 below. 

53, Gawds. Baubles, toys. Cf. M. N, D.\. I. ^^, iv. i, 164, etc. 
63. Joy. Rejoice. Some editors have printed " mothers' joy." 
74. These. The folio has " those," which some prefer. 

81. Fire. The early eds. have " faire " or "fair;" corrected 
in Heath's manuscript notes, and independently by Dyce. Cf. 

Chaucer : — 

" The cercles of his eyen in his heed 
They gloweden bytwixe yelwe and reed, 
And lyk a griffoun lokede he aboute." 

85. Arm^d long and rou7id. Seward and Hudson read "Arms 
long and round ; " which of course is what is meant. 

86. Baldrick. Belt. Qi. Mtcch Ado,\. \.\\^\ the only instance 
in S. Curious = elaborate, elegant. Cf. Cymb. v. 5. 361, etc. 

97. What he fights for. That is, love. 

104. Ivy-tods. The eds. all have " ivy-tops," but " tops " is 
obviously a misprint for tods. " Ivy-tops " are not mentioned by 
any writer, but ivy-tods (thick bushes of ivy) are often alluded to 
by Beaumont and Fletcher. 



234 Notes [Act IV 

105. Not to undo with thmider. Not to be destroyed by thunder. 
Skeat remarks : " It was supposed that some plants were thunder- 
proof. In the * Poet-Prologue ' to Beaumont's Four Plays in One, 
we have the expression, * thunder-fearless verdant bays.' " 

106. The warlike maid. Probably referring to Pallas (Mi- 
nerva). 

109. Crown. The old eds. have " corect " or " correct ; " cor- 
rected by Seward. Littledale reads " court," which is perhaps to 
be preferred. In the manuscript it might easily be mistaken for 
" corect." 

114. Clean, Cf. L. L. L. v. 2. 642 : *' Hector was not so clean- 
timbered." 

122. Well disposed. " Well placed or situated. It is evident that 
the poet wishes to express that the few freckles on the hero's face 
were rather becoming to him. This curious line is probably due to 
an attempt to improve upon Chaucer" (Skeat). In the Ktiightes 
Tale, Emetrius is said to have " A few fraknes [freckles] in his face 
yspreynd" [spinkled]. 

125. Auburn. Spelled " aborne " in the quarto. It has been 
shown that abraha??i, abram, aborne, aborn, abron, aubru7t, etc., 
were all forms of the word now written auburn. In Cor. ii. 3. 
21 the 1st, 2d, and 3d folios read: "our heads are some browne, 
some blacke, some Abram, some bald ; " the 4th folio changes 
" Abram" to "auburn." In T. G. of V. iv. 4. 194, the folio has 
" Her haire is Aburne, mine is perfect Yellow.^'' These are the 
only instances of the word in S. 

131. Grey-eyed. Cf. R. and J. ii. 3. i : "the grey-eyed morn ; " 
the only instance of the word in S. 

132. Which yields compassio7i, etc. Which indicates that he 
will be merciful to the vanquished. 

137. The winner''s oak. Probably alluding to "the oaken gar- 
land" (^Cor. ii. I. 137), or corona civica of the Romans. "For 
whosoever saveth the life of a Roman, it is a manner among them 
to honour him with such a garland " (North's Plutarch^. 



Scene III] Notes 235 

140. Charging-staff. Probably = lance. Possibly a warder (see 
Rich, IL i. 3. 118 and 2 Hen. IV, iv. i. 125) may be meant. 
144. Seward (followed by Colman and Hudson) reads ; — 

" they would show bravely 
Fighting about the titles," etc. 

154. Bravery, Splendor, display ; as often. Cf. A. V. L. ii. 7. 
80, etc. 

Hickson calls this scene " Fletcher's masterpiece." Spalding 
says : " In the soliloquy of the lady, while the poetical spirit is well 
preserved, the alternations of feeling are given with an abruptness 
and a want of insight into the nicer shades of association, which 
resemble the extravagant stage effects of the King and No King 
infinitely more than the delicate yet piercing glance with which 
Shakespeare looks into the human breast in the Othello ; the lan- 
guage, too, is smoother and less powerful than Shakespeare's, and 
one or two classical allusions are a little too correct and studied 
for him." 

Scene III. — 7. Lards it. Is mixed up with it. Cf. Havi. iv. 5. 
37, v. 2. 20, etc. 

Farces, Fills; literally, stuffs. Cf. Hen, V. iv. i. 280: "The 
farced title running fore the king." Y ox forced in the same sense, 
see T. and C, v. I. 64: " wit larded with malice, and malice forced 
with wit." 

II. Down-a, Cf. Ham. iv. 5. 170 : "You must sing, Down 
a-down^ afid you call him a-down-a.^^ 

14. Dido, Cf. A, a7id C. iv. 14. 53 : "Dido and her yEneas 
shall want troops," etc. 

19. Piece of silver. Alluding to the obolus which Charon was 
supposed to demand for ferriage over the Styx, and which was 
placed in the mouth of the corpse for that purpose. For refer- 
ences to Charon, cf. Rich. III. i. 4. 46 and T. and C. iii. 2. ii. 

21. Are — there ^s, etc. The quarto has "as the'rs " and the 



236 Notes [Act IV 

folio " as there's ; " corrected by Mason. Littledale defends the 
old reading. 

24. Proserpine. Cf W, T, iv. 4. 116 and T. and C ii. i. 37. 

30. Barley-break. A rural game often alluded to in the old 
dramatists. It was played in various ways, but generally in the 
south of England by six persons, three of each sex. The general 
idea of it was that one couple should try to catch the rest, when 
within certain boundaries, without letting go each other's hands. 

40. E^igraffed. Rooted, deep-fixed. Cf. 0th. ii. 3. 145, 2 Hen. 
IV. ii. 2. 67, and lo7ig-engraffed in Lear^ i. i. 301. 

47. Perturbed fniiid, etc. Cf. Macb. v. 3. 40 : " Canst thou not 
minister to a mind diseas'd," etc. 

55. A great pe7i' Ivor th. A good bargain. Cf. W. 7". iv. 4. 650: 
" though the pennyworth on his side be the worst " (that is, though 
he get the w^orst of the bargain), etc. For state = estate, cf. M. of V, 
iii. 4. 21, iv. I. 30, etc. 

69. Green. Simple, silly. Cf. 0th. ii. i. 250, etc. 

76. Carve her. Carve for her. Skeat remarks : " Mr. Knight 
inserted y27r before her ; but the following extract from Beaumont 
and Fletcher's play of Z^z^^'^ Pz/^r/w*?^^ (i. i) will show that the 
text is right as it stands : — 

' Incubo. I '11 try your kid, 

If he be sweet : he looks well. [ Tastes it.] Yes ; he is good. 
I '11 carve you, sir. 

Philippo. You use me too too princely; 

Taste and carve too ! 

Incubo. I love to do these offices.' 

And again in Beaumont's Poems (in Beaumont and Fletcher's 
Worksy ed. Dyce, xi. 483), we find the line, ' Drink to him, ca7've 
him, give him compliment.' " For carving to {ox for) a person as 
a mark of affection, see C. of E. ii. 2. 120. The phrase was also 
applied to certain gestures of an amorous sort (see M. W. i. 3. 49) 
and Hudson may be right in explaining it so here. The quarto has 
" crave her ; " corrected in the folio. 



Scene III] Notes 237 

Still among. All the while, ever with the rest. Walker com- 
pares Sidney, Arcadia^ book iv. : " And ever among she would 
sauce her speech," etc. He cites other passages which do not seem 
to me parallel; as Spenser, F, Q. vi. 12. 11 : — 

" There they awhile together thus did dwell 
In much delight and many joys among ; " 

where it may be merely a transposition of " among many joys." 
Cf. Milton, Comus, 1007 : — 

" Till free consent the gods among 
Make her his eternal bride," etc. 

None of the editors have quoted 2 Hen, IV, v. 3. 23 : — 

'" And lusty lads roam here and there 
So merrily, 
And ever among so merrily." 

79. Play-feres, Playmates. Cf. Per, i. prol. 21: "The king 
unto him took a fere." See also v. i. 116 below. 
^'^. What is. Changed by Seward to "what are." 
Otit of square. Littledale quotes Edwardes, Da7non and Pyth- 
ias : " yet he is far out of square." 

84. Regi?nent, Rule, government. Cf. A, and C, iii. 6. 95 : 
" And gives his potent regiment to a trull." 

85. Approved. Proved; as often. Cf. i¥. ^/ F. iii. 2. 79 : "ap- 
prove it with a text," etc. 

89. Success, Issue, result ; the original meaning (that which 
succeeds^ or follows). Hence we find "vile success" (^Oth. iii. 3. 
222), "bad success" (^A, and C, ii. 2. 117), as well as "good suc- 
cess" (^Cor, i. I. 264), etc. 

Spalding gives this scene to Fletcher, to whom he assigns the 
entire underplot of the play ; but Hickson is satisfied that Shake- 
speare is the author. He considers that it is like him " in style 
and language, and its freedom from all the marks of imitation ; " 
and especially in its " high moral purpose," viewing in it " the 



238 Notes [Act V 

natural punishment of the principal character for her ill-governed 
desires, and the mode she took of gratifying them." The "perfect 
coherence of the mad passages, and their pertinency to the general 
subject" (almost a test in itself), also stamp it as Shakespeare's. 



ACT V 



Scene I. — The critics are almost unanimous in assigning this 
act, with the exception of the 2d scene, to Shakespeare ; but Skeat, 
Littledale, and Fleay agree that Fletcher wrote the opening lines. 
There are 13 double endings in the first 17 lines. 

3. Fires, A dissyllable ; as often. Cf. bonfires in 86 below, 
and sire in ii. 5. 9 above. 

4. Szvelli7tg. Theobald conjectured "smelling." 

9. Germane. Akin ; as in W, T. iv. 4. 802 : " those that are 
germane to him; " T. of A. iv. 3. 344: "germane to the lion," 
etc. The early eds. have "german," which is the same word; as 
in cousifi-german. Cf. humane and humane which S. uses inter- 
changeably. 

10. To blow the nearness out, etc. Skeat says: "This line is 
somewhat obscure. To blow out is to extinguish ; and, if nearness 
means nearness in blood, the sense is — to extinguish that kinship 
that exists between you." Probably, however (if there is no cor- 
ruption), near7zess refers rather to their friendship than to their 
kinship. Dr. Ingleby conjectures " fierceness." 

16. Prayers. A dissyllable ; as not unfrequently. Cf. M. W. 
v. 5. 54: "That, ere she sleep, has thrice her prayers said." 

25. Tender. Regard, treat. Cf. Rich. III. \\. ^. 72: "As well 
I tender you and all of yours," etc. 

28. Confound. Destroy ; as often. Cf. M. of V. iii. 2. 78, etc. 
So confusion is often = destruction, ruin. 

29. Port. It is doubtful, as Skeat says, whether this is here = 
bear, carry {¥r. porter), or = bring into port. The latter seems to 



Scene I] Notes 2^^ 

me the more probable, though no other example has been found of 
his sense. 

30. Lirjiiter. Arbiter or shaper of our destinies ; not used by S. 

34. Lovers, Friends; as in v. 4. 123 below. Cf. /. C. iii. 2. 13: 
" Romans, countrymen, and lovers," etc. He calls them sacrifices^ 
because they are to die with him if defeated. 

37. Father of it. That is, the perception of danger which is ever 
the cause of fear. The early eds. have " farther off it ; " corrected 
by Theobald. Littledale defends the old reading thus : " Apprehen- 
sion is the perceptio7i of danger : this underlies fear, is therefore 
farther off than fear is ; beyond it, and so farther to reach and 
harder to eradicate." This is ingenious, h\it father of it seems the 
more natural expression here. 

39. Require, Ask, beseech. Cf. Hen, VIII. ii. 4. 144: "In 
humblest manner I require your highness," etc. See also i. i. 93 
above. 

44. Will stick. The early eds. have ** stickes " or " sticks ; " 
corrected by Seward. Hudson reads " shall stick ; " and Little- 
dale conjectures " on me, where she sticks." 

46. Cestron. Cistern. The word is spelled cesterne in the ist 
folio in 0th. iv. 2. 62 and A. and C. ii. 5. 95. 

49. Hast turned, etc. Cf. Macb. ii. 2. 61 : — 

" No, this my hand will rather 
The multitudinous seas incarnadine, 
Making the green one red." 

The words whose approach were added by Seward, and some- 
thing of the kind is evidently wanted. He adds : " that comets 
prewarn or foretell wars is the vulgar as well as poetical creed ; " 
and he cites Milton, P. L, ii. 708 : — 

" like a comet burn'd, 
That fires the length of Ophiuchus huge 
In the arctic sky, and from his horrid hair 
Shakes pestilence and war." 



240 Notes [Act V 

51. Vast field. Probably = boundless, wide-spread battlefields, 
though it may have another sense of the Latin vastus, namely, 
desolated (Littledale). 

53. Foiso7i, Plenty. Cf. Teiiip, iv. i. iio: "Earth's increase, 
foison plenty" (the song of Ceres). 

54. Arviipotent, The word is taken from Chaucer. Cf. L. Z. L. 
V. 2. 650, 657, and A, W. iv. 3. 265. The old eds. have " armeny- 
potent " or " armenipotent ; " corrected by Seward. 

62. Enorf?io2is. Abnormal (its original sense), disorderly. Cf. 
Lear, ii. 2. 176: " this enormous state ; " the only instance in S. 

66. Plurisy, Plethora, surplus. Cf. Ham. iv. 7. 118: "growing 
to a pleurisy ; " the only instance in S. Warburton remarks : " The 
dramatic writers of that time frequently call a fulness of blood a 
plurisy, as if it came, not from irXevpdf but from p/uSf pliiris.^'' Cf. 
Massinger, The Picture, iv. 2 : " A plurisy of ill blood you must let 
out ; " and Unnatural Combat, iv. I : " Thy plurisy of goodness is 
thy ill," etc. 

68. In this invocation to Mars, if anywhere in the play, we might 
see the fine gold of Shakespeare with no admixture of Fletcher's 
baser metal. As Hickson says, it is " unparalleled as an invoca- 
tion," and " one of the grandest examples of the application of cir- 
cumstances to the character of a power that we have ever met 
with." But if S. wrote it, he must have written the invocation to 
Venus, which is impossible. See on 107 below. 

69. Glister. S. does not use glisten. 

73. Do. The plural is used because tvhose is plural. You whose 
free nobleness do make = you, who, in your free nobleness, do make. 

79. And weep, etc. The reading of the early eds. Seward (fol- 
lowed by all the editors except Littledale) reads " To weep ; " but, 
as Littledale remarks, " surely the idea of enforcement is sufficiently 
plain to allow the old reading to stand, a7id make him weep being 
the sense if expanded." Theobald conjectures "into a girl" = 
" till he become tender as a girl." Weep unto = weep before, 
weep in imploring the favour of. 



Scene I] Notes 24 1 

S^' Before Apollo. That is, sooner than Apollo, the god of 
medicine. 

85. Polled. Shorn, bald-headed. The early eds. have " pould," 
which probably indicates the old pronunciation. Cf. Cor. iv. 5. 215, 
where the folio has "poul'd." 

86. Bonfires. A trisyllable. See on 3 above. 

87. Skipt. Jumped over or through, unsinged by the flame. 
Have (= has) is another example of "confusion of proximity/' 
See on iii. 6. 192 above. Skipping over bonfires vv^as one of the 
customs observed on Midsummer's Eve. 

89. Abuse young lays. That is, ** murder the songs," as we say. 

92. His 77iortal son. Phaethon, v^^hose mother, Clymene, was a 
mortal. Cf. T. G. of V. iii. i. 153, Rich. II. iii. 3. 178, R. and J. 
iii. 2. 3, etc. The huntress is of course Diana, who fell in love with 
Endymion, Cf. AI. of V. v. i. IC9. For moist^ as applied to Diana 
or the moon, see Ham. i. i. 118: " the moist star" (the moon) ; 
W. T. i. 2. I : " the watery stars ; " andi^. N. D, ii. i. 162 : "the 
watery moon." 

102. Liberal. Free-spoken, wanton. Cf. Ham. iv. 7. 171, 
Much Ado, iv. i. 93, M. of V. ii. 2. 194, etc. 

Littledale quotes here the following from Fletcher's Wo??ien 
Pleased, i. i : — 

" I never call'd a fool my friend, a madman, 
That durst opj^se his fame to all opinions, 
His life to unhonest dangers; I never lov'd him, 
Durst know his name, that sought a virgin's ruin, 
Nor took I pleasure in acquaintance 
With men, that give as loose reins to their fancies 
As the wild ocean to his raging fluxes : 
A noble soul I twin with," etc. 

105. Have hotly asked them, etc. Cf. T. a7id C. v. 2. 130 : 
" Think we had mothers," etc. La7ge = loose, licentious. Cf. 
Much Ado, ii. 3. 206, iv. i. 53, etc. 

107. I knew a man, etc. Furnivall (preface to New Shaks. Soc. 

TWO NOBLE KINSMEN — l6 



242 Notes [Act V 

ed. of Spalding's Letter, p. vi.) asks : " Again, is it likely — and 
again, I say, at the end of his career, with all his experience behind 
him — that Shakspere would make his hero Palamon publicly urge 
on Venus in his prayer to her that she was bound to protect him 
because he'd believed a wanton young wife's word that her old 
incapable husband was the father of her child? Is this the kind 
of thing that the Shakspere of Imogen, of Desdemona, of Queen 
Katherine, would put forward as the crown of his life and work ? " 
Spalding refers to the passage as an " unpleasing sketch of the 
deformity of decrepit old age," but believes it to be Shakespeare's, 
as it is " largely impressed with his air of truth," etc. Hickson 
makes no comments on the passage. 

113. Globy. Protruding ; not used by S. 

1 14. That. So that ; as in v. 3. 26 below. 

115. Anatomy, Skeleton. Cf. K, John, iii. 4. 40, C. of E. v. I. 
238, etc. 

116. Fere. Mate, bride. See on iv. 3. 79 above. 

120. Defier, Apparently = one who despises or spurns ; not 
used by S. For defy in this sense, cf. K. fohii, iii. 4. 23, etc. 

122. Close. Private, secret. Cf. Rich. III. i. i. 158, iv. 2. 35, 
etc. 

123. Concealments. Things that should be concealed or kept 
secret ; as in i Hen. IV. iii. i. 167. 

126. Soft sweet. Dyce prints " soft-sweet." 

131. Chase. Hunting-ground; as in T. A. \\. 3. 255: "Upon 
the north side of this pleasant chase," etc. 

137. In the stage -direction records is = recorders, a kind of 
small flute or flageolet. Cf. Ham. iii. 2. 303, 360. See also Mil- 
ton, P. L.\. 551 : — 

" the Dorian mood 
Of flutes and soft recorders." 

Nares says the instrument was so called because birds were taught 
to record by it ; one of the meanings of record being to warble. 
Cf. Browne, Brit. Past, ii. 4 : — 



Scene I] Notes 243 

" The nymph did earnestly contest 
Whether the birds or she recorded best ; " 

Beaumont and Fletcher, Valentinian, ii. i : — 

" For you are fellows only know by rote, 
As birds record their lessons ; " 

and Drayton, Eel, : — 

" Fair Philomel night-musicke of the spring, 

Sweetly records her tuneful harmony." 

Still music — soft music. 

140. W ind- f anil' d snow, Cf. W, T, iv. 4. 375: — 

" or the fann'd snow that 's bolted 
By the northern blasts twice o'er." 

See also T. of A. iv. 3. 386, Hajn. iii. i. 141, and Cynnb. ii. 5. 13. 

On female knights, cf. Mtcch Ado, v. 3. 13 and A, W. i. 3. 120. 

144. Green eye. Cf. R, and J, iii. 5. 220: "so green ... an 
eye ; " and M, N. D.\. i. 342: " His eyes were green as leeks." 
Clarke remarks : " The brilliant touch of green visible in very light 
hazel eyes, and which gives wonderful clearness and animation to 
their look, has been admiringly denoted by various poets from time 
immemorial." Plautus, in his Cttrciclio, speaks of a man " cum . . . 
oculis herbeis." In a sonnet by Drummond of Hawthornden, the 
gods are represented as debating of what colour a beauty's eyes 
shall be. Mars and Apollo vote for black : — 

"Chaste Phoebe spake for purest azure dyes, 
But Jove and Venus green about the light, 
To frame thought best, as bringing most delight, 
That to pin'd hearts hope might for aye arise." 

Cf. Longfellow, The Spanish Student : "Ay, soft emerald eyes ; " 

and again : — 

" in her tender eyes 
Just that soft shade of green we sometimes see 
In evening skies." 



244 Notes [Act V 

In a note on the former passage, the poet says : " The Spaniards, 
with good reason, consider this colour of the eyes as beautiful, and 
celebrate it in song ; as, for example, in the well-known Villancico : 

' Ay ojuelos verdes, 
ay los mis ojuelos, 
ay hagan los cielos 
que de mi te acuerdes ! 

* * * * 
Tengo confianza 
de mis verdes ojos.' 

Dante speaks of Beatrice's eyes as emeralds {Purgat. xxxi. ii6). 
Lami says in his Annotazioni, * Erano i suoi occhi d' un turchino 
verdiccio, simile a quel del mare.' " 

145. Maculate. Cf. Z. L. L. i. 2. 97 : " Most maculate thoughts," 
etc. 

147. Scurril. Scurrilous. Cf. T. and C. i. 3. 148; "scurril 
jests," etc. 

Port = gate ; as in Cor. i. 7. i, v. 6. 6, etc. Theobald and Dr. 
Ingleby conjecture "porch " (cf. //apt, i. 5. 63), but the figure is 
the same with either word. 

151. / kave pointed. That is, I have a husband pointed, or 
appointed, for me. Y ox pointed, see T, of S. iii. 2. i : " the pointed 
day," etc. 

154. Of 7nine eyes. The early eds., and the modern ones down 
to that of Dyce, make these words limit election. 

158. Pretenders, Aspirants ; not in a bad sense. S. does not 
use the word in any sense. 

161. File and quality. Position and office. 

163. General of ebbs andflozus. That is, ruler of the tides. Skeat 
says that this is " a very singular way of referring to the moon or 
Diana ; " but cf. Temp, v. i. 270: "That could control the moon, 
make flows and ebbs ; " M, N, D, ii. i. 103 : " the moon, the gov- 
erness of floods ; " I //en. /V. i. 2. 32: "governed, as the sea is. 



Scene II] Notes 245 

by our noble and chaste mistress the moon ; " and W. T. i. 2. 

427: — 

" You may as well 

Forbid the sea for to obey the moon ; " 
See also Coleridge, Ancient Mariner : — 

" Still as a slave before his lord, 

The ocean hath no blast ; 
His great bright eye most silently 

Up to the moon is cast, 
If he may know which way to go, 

For she guides him smooth or grim — 
See, brother, see, how graciously 

She looketh down on him ! " 

If it is the feminine use of general which Skeat regards as " singu- 
lar," cf. Tennyson's reference to Venus (in Dream of Fair Wo7?ieji) 
as **The captain of my dreams ; " which, by the way, some excel- 
lent critics have misunderstood, referring it to the sun. 

165. Advances! Raises. See on i. i. 93 above. 

167. A virgin flower^ etc. Cf. M, A^. Z). i. I. 76: — 

" But earthlier happier is the rose distill'd 
Than that which, withering on the virgin thorn, 
Grows, lives, and dies in single blessedness." 

172. Unclasp. Unfold, reveal. Cf. Much Ado^ i. i. 325: " un- 
clasp my heart," etc. 

Scene II. — 17. Ho thercy doctor! Mason would read "Hold 
there ; " but cf. v. 4. 41 below : " Hold, ho ! " 

20. Honesty, Chastity ; as often. Cf. M, W. i. 3. 35, ii. I. 88, 
103, ii. 2. 75, 244, etc. 

34. Videlicet. That is to say ; as in M. JV, i. 1. 140, A. V. L, 
iv. I. 97, etc. 

44. Come cut and long tail. A proverbial expression = what- 
ever kind may come. It seems to have been originally used of 



246 Notes [Act V 

dogs with tails clipped or undipped, but came to be applied to 
horses also, Cf. iii. 4. 22 above. 

45. Turns ye. That \?>, foj- ye ; the " ethical dative." 

46. He 7/ daiice^ etc. There is perhaps an allusion to Banks's 
famous horse. Cf. Z. Z. Z. i. 2. 56 : " the dancing horse." There 
is no question as to the allusion there to a famous horse of the 
time, often called " Bankes' horse " from his owner, who had 
trained him to perform many remarkable feats. Raleigh, in his 
Hist, of the World, says : " If Banks had lived in older times, he 
would have shamed all the inchanters in the world ; for whosoever 
was most famous among them could never master or instruct any 
beast as he did his horse." Steevens quotes, among other allusions 
to the animal, Jonson, Every Mmi Out of His Humotcr : " He 
keeps more ado with this monster than ever Bankes did with his 
horse ; " and the same author's Epigrams : — 

" Old Banks the jugler, our Pythagoras, 
Grave tutor to the learned horse." 

In France, according to Bishop Morton, Banks "was brought into 
suspition of magicke, because of the strange feates which his horse 
Morocco plaied at Orleance ; " but Banks having made the beast 
kneel down to a crucifix and kiss it, " his adversaries rested satis- 
fied, conceiving (as it might seeme) that the divell had no power 
to come neare the crosse." In Rome he was less fortunate, if we 
may believe Reed, who says that both horse and owner were there 
burned by order of the Pope. According to other authorities, 
however. Banks came back safe to London, and was still living 
in King Charles's time, a jolly vintner in Cheapside. 

47. Hobby-horse. A figure in the morris-dances. In Ham. iii. 
2. 142: "O, the hobby-horse is forgot." It is often referred to in 
ballads of the time as " forgot," either because it came to be omitted 
from the games or because of the attempts of the Puritans to put 
down these sports, d. T.. Z. Z. iii. i. 30. Steevens quotes Beau- 
mont and Fletcher, Women Pleased, iv. i : " Shall the hobby-horse 



Scene II] Notes 247 

be forgot then?" also Ben Jonson, Entertainment at Althorpe : 
" But see the hobby-horse is forgot," etc. 

49. Light d' Love. A very popular dance-tune in the time of S. 
Cf. Mtich Ado, iii. 4. 44 and T. G. of V. i. 2. %t^. 

59. Bottles. Bundles of hay ; as in M. N. D. iv. i. 37 ; the 
only instance of this sense in S. The word is still used in England 
in the old proverb, " to look for a needle in a bottle of hay." In a 
court-book dated 1551, the halfpenny bottle of hay is said to weigh 
two pounds and a half, and the penny bottle five pounds. Cf. Cop- 
ley, Wits, Fits, and Fancies, 1614: "A country-man passing along 
the street, met with a car, and the horse spying his bounsing beard, 
snap'd at it instead of a bottle of hay ; then the country-man said : 
The dev'll take thee, who made thee a barber ? " 

60. Strike. Strikes, or bushels ; still used in provincial English. 
Bailey calls the strike " four bushels ; " but this is probably a slip 
for " four pecks. ^^ The measure, however, like many others, may 
have varied in different localities. 

62. A miller^ s mare. " A miller's mare, working round a beaten 
track (to drive the mill), was perhaps proverbial for her steady- 
going attention to business " (Littledale). 

69. Stool-ball. A game played with a ball and one or two stools, 
very popular among young women. 

74. Nice. Scrupulous, punctilious. Cf. M. of V. ii. i. 14, etc. 

82. O, sir, etc. Seward, Weber, and Hudson give this to the 
Gaoler. 

Spalding says of this scene that it is " disgusting and imbecile in 
the extreme," and *' may be dismissed with a single quotation : 
* What stuff she utters ! ' " Hickson compares the scene with iv. 3 
(ascribed to S.) : "We must bear in mind the advice of the doctor 
in the former scene ; he tells the wooer to take upon himself the 
name of Palamon, and to do whatever shall become Palamon, still 
aiming to intermingle his petition of grace and acceptance into 
her favour ; but it could never be imagined from these directions 
that the * union ' was to take place under such circumstances. , . . 



248 Notes [Act V 

The object sought was her restoration ; and in the last scene of 
act V. the gaoler informs Palamon that his daughter 

' is well restor'd, 
And shortly to be married.' 

But turning to the second scene, we find the doctor saying, in ref- 
erence to the wooer's telling him he had * kissed her twice,' 

' 'T was well done ; twenty times had been far better, 
For there the cure lies mainly.' 

That insight into the nature of his patient's disorder, displayed in 
so remarkable a manner by the doctor in a former scene, in this 
has left him ; and his business here seems to be to recommend 
and nurse up a sensual idea into an alliance with better feelings. 
The daughter's brain still * coins,' but the subjects are far-fetched, 
and have no relation to the speaker's condition or state of mind, 
nor do they help the progress of the play. . . . The former scene 
is in prose wholly, while this is in Fletcher's verse ; but, in short, 
the tone and moral effect of the two scenes are so different, the 
same characters have so altered an aspect, the language, senti- 
ments, and allusions are so unlike, that the case of any one who 
can read and deliberately compare them, and still believe them to 
be by the same writer, we must give over as hopeless." 

Scene III. — 60 / will stay here, etc. The pointing is essen- 
tially the same as in the old eds. ; and the meaning is plain : 
/ will stay he7'e, (. . .) 7iot taint ??nne eye, etc. Dyce follows 
Weber in pointing thus : — 

" With what shall happen — 'gainst the which there is 
No deafing — but to hear, not taint," etc. 

But to hear = so as not to hear. 

12. /n their kind. In their nature, in reality ; opposed to pen- 
ciird = painted. For kind, cf. A. IV. i. 3. 67, A, Y, Z, iii. 2. 
109, etc. 

16. Price. Prize, reward. Cf. 31 below. 



Scene III] Notes 249 

17. Question's title. The title in dispute, the right of the contro- 
versy. Dyce and Hudson read " questant's " (cf. A. W. ii. i. i6); 
but here, there being two questants, to crown the questajifs title 
(that is, the disputant's title) would be unmeaning. 

18. lVi7ik, Shut my eyes ; as often. Cf. Cyjiib, ii. 3. 25, ii. 4. 
89, V. 4. 194, etc. 

21. Envy. Malice; as very often. Cf. M, of V, iv. I. 10, 
126, etc. 

26. That. So that. See on v. I. 114 above. 

28. Set off. Offset, cancel. For to with guilty, see W, T. iv. 4. 
549, etc. 

42. A71 engine bent. An engine of war ready for use. Bend, 
which is properly used only of a bow, is often applied to other 
warlike instruments. Cf. K. John, ii. I. 37 : "Our cannon shall 
be bent," etc. See also 3 //<?«. VI . v. i. %^, Rich. III. i. 2. 95, 
Lear, iv. 2. 74, etc. See on iii. i. 30 above. 

45. Aspect, Regularly accented on the last syllable in S. 

46. Graved, Deeply furrowed. Cf. Souji. ico. 10 : *' If Time 
have any wrinkle graven there." 

49. His object. Its object. See on iv. i. 60 above. 

54. On him. The old eds. have "on thtm ; " corrected by 
Seward. 

59. The spoiling of his figure. See p. 26 above. 

63. Ward. Posture of defence. Cf. Temp. i. 2. 471 : "Come 
from your ward," etc. Offence = blow, or offensive movement. 

69. Success, Accented here on the first syllable. Cf. i. i. 209 
above. 

70. Prim'st. For the superlative, cf. Hen. VIII, ii. 4. 229 : 
"the primest creature." See also i. i. 161 above. For the con- 
tracted form (of which we have already had several examples in 
this play), see p. 171 (6) above. 

72. Servarit. Lover. Cf. i. I. 89 above. 

76. Sinister, Left ; as in M. N, D,\, I. 164 : "right and sin- 
ister," etc. S. accents it regularly on the penult. 



250 Notes [Act V 

80. Pyramid. See iii. 6. 295 above. 

82. Redemption. Rescue (of Arcite). 

83. Tilte7's. The early eds. have "Tytlers,'' vi^hich Littledale 
explains as "contenders about a title, questants." He adds that 
there v^^ere eight bold titters, but only two bold titlers. It seems to 
me more natural to call Palamon and Arcite here the titters than 
the titters. If there were such a word as the latter, it ought to 
mean givers or possessors of titles rather than contenders about 
them. The change to Tylters was first made by Tonson, and all 
the eds. since have given titters. The original reading seems to 
have been overlooked unti"' Littledale called attention to it. 

%(i. Their single share, etc. The share of nobleness belonging 
to each puts any living woman at a disadvantage in the compari- 
son, shows her worth to be inferior. Line %"] is wanting in the 
folio, and was first restored from the quarto by Colman. 

95. Half-sights saw, etc. We still speak of " seeing with half 
an eye." 

96. God^s lid! An oath commonly contracted into ''slid I Cf. 
M, W. iii. 4. 24, etc. Emilia swears more like Queen Elizabeth 
than "like a comfit-maker's wife," as Hotspur says (i Hen. IV. 
iii. I. 53). 

99. Go to law with. Cope with, defend themselves against. 
10 1. Miscarry. See on iii. 6. 304 above. 

103. Our fancies. Our affections, our love. See on iv. 2. 52 
above. 

119. Alcides. Hercules. Cf. M. of V. ii. i. 35, iii. 2. 55, 
T. of S. i. 2. 260, etc. 

120. A sow of lead. The word sow is used like pig to denote a 
mass of smelted metal. Skeat compares 2 Hen. IV. i. i. 118. 

124. Philo?nels. Nightingales; as in R. of L. 1079, 1 1 28, 

M. N. D. ii. 2. 12, etc. 

127. Out-breasted. Outsung. Cf. breast = musical voice, in 

T, N. ii. 3. 20. 

129. Heavens. The heavenly powers ; as often. 



Scene IV] Notes 251 

130. Hardly. After hard fighting. Cf. T. G. of V, ii. I. 115 : 
"Now trust me, madam, it came hardly off" (with difficulty), 
etc. 

132. Present. Immediate ; as often. Cf. presently in ii. I. 48 
above. 

133. Pinch ^ em. " Vex them. It was in the very spirit of chiv- 
alry that a warrior should not care to survive defeat. This doom 
of Palamon and his three knights would be revolting, if it were 
not that the spectators might be expected to know enough of 
Chaucer's story to make them suspect that the sentence would not 
really be executed. To which must be added the consideration, 
that the spectators of plays in the time of James I. could behold, 
almost unmoved, many things which we now shudder even to 
read" (Skeat). See also on iii. 6. 299 above. 

135. Ar?n your prize. That is, take her in your arms, embrace 
her. Cf. Cymb. iv. 2. 400 : " come, arm him." Knight explains 
it rather tamely by " Offer your arm to the lady you have won ; " 
and Mason says, "Take her by the arm." 

Spalding says of this scene, that the details " make it clear that 
Shakespeare's hand was in it." He adds : " The greater part, it is 
true, is not of the highest excellence ; but the vacillations of 
Emilia's feelings are well and delicately given, some individual 
thoughts and words mark Shakespeare, there is little of his obscure 
brevity, much of his thoughtfulness legitimately applied, and an 
instance or two of its abuse." 

Scene IV. — 5. To live still. Littledale is in doubt whether 
j/z*// modifies live or Have; but it seems better to connect it with 
the former. 

6. We prevent. Skeat reads " herein we prevent." 

8. Rheum. Rheumatism. Ci. M. for III. m. i. 31 : " Do curse 
the gout, serpigo, and the rheum," etc. 

Lag hours. Latter hours, or lingering hours; or, perhaps, com- 
bining the two meanings. Cf. i Hen. IV. v. i. 23 : — 



252 Notes [Act V 

" To entertain the lag-end of my life 
With quiet hours." 

Attend For grey approachers = await aged comers towards the 
gods, or those who die in old age. For attend, of. iv. i. 55 above. 

10. Unwapper^d. " Unworn, not debilitated" (Dyce). In T. 
of A, iv. 3. 38, we find wappen*d in the opposite sense ; and it is 
a question whether the original word is wappen or wapper. 
Both are so rare that it is best to leave them unaltered. 

11. That. "That is, who ; referring to we in 9. In the next 
line such refers to the grey approachers" (Skeat). 

13. For. Because; as in i. 2. 54 above. For c/ear, see on i. 
2. 74 above. 

15. Too-too. Cf. M. of V, ii. 6. 42, etc. In many instances 
too'too seems less emphatic than too, too, which we have in Ham. i. 
2. 129 ; but Schmidt does not recognize the distinction. 

20. Tottering Fortune. Signifying, as Fluellen says {Hen, V, 
iii. 6. 35), "that she is turning, and inconstant, and mutability, and 
variation ; and her foot, look you, is fixed upon a spherical stone, 
which rolls, and rolls, and rolls." 

23. Taste to you. Alluding to the ancient custom of having the 
king's food tasted before it was served, as a precaution against 
poison. Cf. Rich. II. v. 5. 99, etc. 

35. Quit. Requite. Cf. iii. 6. 24 above. The old eds. have 
" quight ; " and Littledale thinks we should read " quite," which 
he takes to be a distinct word from quit. 

47. Dearly. The old eds. have " early ; " corrected by Seward. 
Cf. 129 below ; and for the intensive use of the word, cf. A. Y. L. 
i. 3. 35 : " hated dearly," etc. 

50. Owing. Owning, having. See on i. i. 88 above. 

53. lYote. Stigma. Cf. A\ of L. 208 : " sham'd with the 
note." 

54. Allowance. Authority, confirmation. 

55. Calkins. Calks (or corks, as the word is often spelled and 
pronounced), or the points in a horseshoe that prevent slipping. 



Scene IV] Notes 253 

56. TelL Count; as in iii. 5. 80 above. The calkins seemed to 
touch the stones lightly, like the fingers in counting. 

60. For^ as they say, etc. Probably alluding to the story of 
Pythagoras and the blacksmith's hammers. Cf. Longfellow, To a 

Child :-^ 

"As great Pythagoras of yore, 
Standing beside the blacksmith's door, 
And hearing the hammers, as they smote 
The anvils with a different note. 
Stole from the varying tones that hung 
Vibrant on every iron tongue 
The secret of the sounding wire, 
And formed the seven-corded lyre." 

Chappell says that the story is an absurd one, because " the tone 
of a bell cannot be altered in pitch by changing the weight of its 
clapper." The story is doubtless mythical, but if one wanted to 
defend it he might reply that possibly the blacksmith and his men 
were hammering on different anvils. It will be noted that Long- 
fellow has " anvils." 

62. Cold as old Saturn. A reference to the astrological de- 
scriptions of the planet Saturn, which was called cold because the 
god for whom it was named was represented as bearing the " frosty 
signs " of extreme old age. Cf. Cymb, ii. 5. 12 : — 

" A pudency so rosy the sweet view on 't 
Might well have warm'd old Saturn." 

Here the Jire malevolent shows that the planet is meant. Cf. 
Much Ado, i. 3. 12 : "born under Saturn," etc. 

66. Toy. A freak, a sudden whim ; as in Ham. i. 3. 6, i. 4. 
75, etc. Cf. Philaster, v. 3 : " What if a toy take ' em i ' the heels 
now, and they run all away ? " and North's Plutarch : " WTien a 
mad mood or toy took him in the head." 

69. Majiage. Used, as often, in the technical sense of the 
management or training of a horse. 

72. Jadery. " Jade's tricks " {Much Ado, \. I. 145, A. W. iv. 



254 Notes [Act V 

5. 64, etc.). Y ox jade as applied to a vicious nag, cf. 81 below. 
For disseati cf. Macb. v. 3. 21, where, however, the reading is very 
doubtful. 

77. On end he sta^ids. The quarto prints thus : — 

" He kept him tweene his legges, on his hind hoofes 

on end he stands 
That Ar cites leggs being higher then his head," etc. 

This indicates either that the compositor could not make out the 
"copy," or that the first part of the line somehow dropped out 
after it was put in type. The sense, however, is complete, and it 
seems better to leave the text as it is than to read " Quickly up- 
rearing, so on end he stands," as Hudson does. Skeat thinks that 
" the half-line is rather effective." It has occurred to me that the 
words on end he stands were perhaps interlined in the copy as a 
substitute for on his hind hoofs (the latter being accidentally left 
without crossing out), and that we should read : — 

" He kept him ' tween his legs, on end he stands, 
That Arcite's legs," etc. 

81. Poise, Weight; as in Zf^r, ii. I. 122: " Occasions, noble 
Gloster, of some poise; " 0th. iii. 3. 82: "full of poise and diffi- 
cult weight," etc. 

92. Told, Counted. Cf. 56 above. 

I was false. "Seward remarks: 'I beUeve the reader will not 
easily be convinced that Arcite had been false.' In fact the dra- 
matists have forgotten to insert any instances of his falseness. The 
epithet * false Arcite' is in the Knightes Tale, 287; but even 
Chaucer has not made it very clear that Arcite really was so ; un- 
less, indeed, we refer to his poem entitled Of queeji Annelida and 
false Arcite " (Skeat). 

98. Honour. That is, Arcite's obsequies. 

loi. Your thanks. The old eds. have " Our thanks ; " corrected 
by Dyce. 



Scene IV] Notes 255 

104. Arrose. Sprinkle (Fr. a^'roser). The old eds. all have 
"arowze; " and Cotgrave spells the Fr. verb "arrouser." 

108. Grace. Honour; as in 125 below. Cf. to do grace 
(i Hen, IV. ii. i. 79, /. C. iii. 2. 62), iyi grace of {M. N. D. iv. 
I. 139, Ham. i. 2. 124), etc. 

109. Bear this hence. This direction to remove the body was 
probably inserted to suit the requirements of the old stage. S. 
often makes his characters do this because there were no servants 
to perform the duty. 

118. Fancy. Love. Cf. iv. 2. 52 above. 

123. Lovers. Friends. See on v. I. 34 above. 

126. In whose end. At the end of ^N\{\z\i fu7ieral. 

131. Charmers. *' That is, enchanters, ruling us at their will '^ 
(Seward). 

135. And ivith yoti, etc. "Cease to dispute with you who are 
beyond the reach of our expostulations " (Skeat). 

137. Like the time. This is generally explained : " as others do, 
by hiding our griefs; " but it is clearly = as this sad time demands, 
referring to the preparations for Arcite's funeral. Cf. K.John, v. 
7. iio: '*0, let us pay the time but needful woe." For the form 
of expression here, cf. Macb. i. 5. 62: " Look like the time." 

Spalding says of this scene : " The manner is Shakespeare's, and 
some parts are little inferior to his very finest passages." Hickson 
makes no comment upon it. Swinburne believes that Shakespeare's 
work has been interpolated and filled out by Fletcher. He says : 
"The scene is opened by Shakespeare in his most majestic vein of 
meditative or moral verse, pointed and coloured as usual with him 
alone by direct and absolute aptitude to the immediate sentiment 
and situation of the speaker and of no man else : then either 
Fletcher strikes in for a moment with a touch of somewhat more 
Shakespearean tone than usual, or possibly we have a survival of 
some lines' length, not unretouched by Fletcher, from Shakespeare's 
first sketch for a conclusion of the somewhat calamitous and cum- 
brous underplot, which in any case was ultimately left for Fletcher 



256 



Notes [Act V 



to expand into such a shape and bring by such means to an end as 
we may safely swear that Shakespeare would never have admitted; 
then with the entrance and ensuing narrative of Pirithous we have 
none but Shakespeare before us again, though it be Shakespeare 
undoubtedly in the rough, and not as he might have chosen to 
present himself after due revision, with rejection (we may well 
suppose) of this point and readjustment of that; then upon the 
arrival of the dying Arcite with his escort, there follows a grievous 
little gap, a flaw but pitifully patched by Fletcher, whom we recog- 
nize at wellnigh his worst and weakest in Palamon's appeal to his 
kinsman for a last word, * if his heart, his worthy, manly heart ' 
(an exact and typical example of Fletcher's tragically prosaic and 
prosaically tragic dash of incurable commonplace), ' be yet un- 
broken,' and in the flaccid and futile answer which fails so signally 
to supply the place of the most famous and pathetic passage in 
all the masterpiece of Chaucer ; a passage to which even Shake- 
speare could have added but some depth and grandeur of his own 
giving, since neither he nor Dante's very self nor any other among 
the divinest of men could have done more or better than match 
it for tender and true simplicity of words more * dearly sweet and 
bitter ' than the bitterest or sweetest of men's tears. Then after 
the duly and properly conventional engagement on the parts of 
Palamon and Emilia respectively to devote the anniversary * to 
tears' and* to honour,' the deeper tone returns for one grand last 
time, grave at once and sudden and sweet as the full choral open- 
ing of an anthem : the note which none co.uld ever catch of Shake- 
speare's very voice gives out the peculiar cadence that it alone can 
give in the modulated instinct of a solemn change or shifting of the 
metrical emphasis or icttcs from one to the other of two repeated 

words — 

' that nought could buy 
Dear love but loss of dear love ! ' 

That is a touch beyond the ear or the hand of Fletcher : a chord 
sounded from Apollo's own harp after a somewhat hoarse and 



Epilogue] Notes 257 

reedy wheeze from the scrannel-pipe of a lesser player than Pan. 
Last of all, in words worthy to be the latest left of Shakespeare's, 
his great and gentle Theseus winds up the heavenly harmonies of 
his last beloved grand poem. " 

EPILOGUE 

2. Say. " Here say apparently means speak ; and the simile 
seems to consist in a comparison with schoolboys who are afraid to 
say their lesson " (Skeat). 

3. Cruel = fearful. The cruel is a mere intensive. Cf. Hen. V. 
V. 2. 216: "I love thee cruelly." 

12. The tale. Evidently a reference to the source of the play. 
We refers of course to the actors. 

17. Loves. Plural because referring to more than one person; 
a frequent idiom in S. Cf. J. C. iii. 2. 241, etc. 



TWO NOBLE KINSMEN— 17 



APPENDIX 

The Story as told by Chaucer 

The following outline is condensed from Knight : — 
The Knightes Tale of Chaucer opens with the return to Athens 
of the " duke that highte Theseus," after he had 

" conquer'd- all the regne of Feminie, 
That whilom was ycleped Scythia, 
And wedded the freshe queen Hypolita, 
And brought her home with him to his countrey 
With muchel glory and great solempnitie, 
And eke her younge sister Emelie." 

The Two Noble Kins7ne7i opens with Theseus at Athens, in the 
company of Hippolyta and her sister, proceeding to the celebration 
of his marriage with the *- dreaded Amazonian." Their bridal 
procession is interrupted by the 

" Three queens, whose sovereigns fell before 
The wrath of cruel Creon." 

In Chaucer the suppliants are a more numerous company. As 
Theseus was approaching Athens, 

" He was ware, as he cast his eye aside, 
Where that there kneeled in the high6 way 
A company of ladies tway and tway, 
Each after other, clad in clothes black ; 
But such a cry and such a woe they make, 
That in this world n' is creature living 
That ever heard such another waimenting." 

258 



Appendix 259 

Briefly they tell their tale of woe, and as rapidly does the chival- 
rous duke resolve to avenge their wrongs : — 

" And right anon, withouten more abode, 
His banner he display'd, and forth he rode 
To Thebes ward, and all his host beside." 

The Queen and her sister remained at Athens. Out of this rapid 
narration, which occupies little more than a hundred lines in 
Chaucer, has the first scene of The Two Noble Kuismejt been 
constructed. 

In Chaucer, Theseus makes swift work with Creon and with 
Thebes : — 

•' With Creon, which that was of Thebes king, 
He fought, and slew him manly as a knight 
In plain bataille, and put his folk to flight ; 
And by assault he won the city after, 
And rent adown both wall, and spar, and rafter ; 
And to the ladies he restor'd again 
The bodies of their husbands that were slain. 
To do th* obsequies, as was then the guise. " 

It is in the battle-field that Palamon and Arcite are discovered 
wounded : — 

" Not fully quick ne fully dead they were. 
But by their cote-armure and by their gear 
The heralds knew them well in special." 

The incident is literally followed in the play, where the herald 
says, in answer to the question of Theseus, "They are not 
dead ? " — 

" Nor in a state of life : had they been taken 
When their last hurts were given, 't was possible 
They might have been recover'd ; yet they breathe 
And have the name of men." 

In Chaucer, Theseus is to the heroic friends a merciless con- 
queror : — 



26o Appendix 

" He full soon them sent 
To Athenes, for to dwellen in prison 
Perpetual, he n' olde no ransom." 

But in The Two Noble Kinsmen he would appear to exhibit him- 
self as a generous foe, who, having accomplished the purposes of 
his expedition, has no enmity with the honest defenders of their 
country. 

The fifth scene of The Two Noble Kins77ien is a scenic expan- 
sion of a short passage in Chaucer : — 

" But it were all too long for to devise 
The greate clamour and the waimenting 
Which that the ladies made at the brenning 
Of the bodies." 

In Chaucer we learn that — 

** in a tow'r, in anguish and in woe, 
Dwellen this Palamon and eke Arcite, 
For evermore there may no gold them quite." 

The old romantic poet reserves his dialogue for the real business 
of the story, when the two friends, each seeing Emilia from the 
prison-window, become upon the instant defying rivals for her 
love. 

We are now arrived at a part of the tale where the poetry of 
Chaucer assumes the dramatic form. The description of Emilia 
walking in the garden, the first sight of her by Palamon, and his 
imaginative love, the subsequent prostration of his heart before 
the same vision by Arcite — are all told with wonderful spirit by the 
old poet. The entire passage is too long for extract, but we give 
some lines which will show that the energy of Chaucer imposed no 
common task of rivalry upon him who undertook to dramatize 
this scene of passion : — 

" This Palamon gan knit his browns tway. 
' It were,' quod he, ' to thee no great honour 
For to be false, ne for to be traytour 



Appendix 261 

To me, that am thy cousin and thy brother 
Ysworn full deep, and each of us to other, 
That never for to dien in the pain, 
Till that the death departen shall us twain, 
Neither of us in love to hinder other, 
Ne in none other case, my leve brother; 
But that thou shouldest truly further me 
In every case as I should further thee. 
This was thine oath, and mine also, certain ; 
I wot it well, thou dar'st it not withsain : 
Thus art thou of my counsel out of doubt, 
And now thou wouldest falsely been about 
To love my lady, whom I love and serve, 
And ever shall till that my hearte sterve.' 

" ' Now certes, false Arcite, thou shalt not so : 
I lov'd her first, and tolde thee my woe 
As to my counsel, and my brother sworn 
To further me as I have told beforn, 
For which thou art ybounden as a knight 
To helpen me, if it lie in thy might, 
Or elles art thou false I dare well say'n.' 

" This Arcita fully proudly spake again. 
' Thou shalt,' quod he, ' be rather false than I, 
And thou art false, I tell thee utterly, 
For par aiiiour I lov'd her first ere thou.' " 

It is a remarkable circumstance that one of the conditions of the 
friendship of the young men — the chivalric bond, — 

" Neither of us in love to hinder other," — 

so capable of dramatic expansion, has been passed over by the 
writer of this scene in The Two N'oble Kinsmen. The stury is fol- 
lowed in Arcite being freed ; but in Chaucer he returns to Thebes, 
and after a long absence comes to the court of Theseus in disguise. 
The unity of time is preserved in the drama, by making him a 
victor in athletic sports, and thus introduced to the favour of The- 



262 Appendix 

seus and the service of Emilia. In Chaucer, Palamon, after seven 
years' durance, 

" By helping of a friend brake his prison." 

The Gaoler's Daughter is a parasitical growth around the old 
vigorous tree. 

Palamon has fled to the woods. Arcite has ridden to the 
fields to make his May-garland ; and his unhappy friend, fearful 
of pursuit, hears him, unknown, sing — 

" O Maye, with all thy flowres, and thy green, 
Right welcome be thou faire freshe May ; 
I hope that I some green here getten may." 

The old poet continues, with his inimitable humour : — 

" So fareden they in changing of their hue, 
As far as either of them other knew. 
There n' as no good day, ne no saluing, 
But straight withouten wordes rehearsing, 
Everich of them help to armen other 
As friendly as he were his owen brother; 
And after that with sharpe speares strong 
They foinden each at other wonder long." 

It is upon the " everich of them help to armen other " that the 
dramatist has founded the interchange of courtesies between the 
two kinsmen. The interruption to the combat by Theseus and his 
train ; the condemnation of the rivals by the duke ; the interces- 
sion of Hippolyta and Emilia ; and the final determination that the 
knights should depart, and within a month return accompanied by 
other knights to contend in bodily strength for the fair prize — 
these incidents are founded pretty closely upon Chaucer, with the 
exception that the elder poet does not make Theseus decree that 
the vanquished shall die upon the block. 

The supposed interval of time during the absence of the knights 
is filled up by Chaucer with some of the finest descriptions which 
can be found in his writings. In T/ie Two Noble Kinsf/ien the 



Appendix 26;^ 

whole of the fourth act is occupied with the underplot, with the 
exception of the second scene, which begins with the long and not 
very dramatic soliloquy of Emilia upon the pictures of her two 
lovers, and is followed by an equally undramatic description of the 
arrival of the princes and of the qualities of their companions. 
This description is founded upon Chaucer. 

Chaucer has wonderfully described the temples of Venus, of 
Mars, and of Diana. The dramatist has followed him in making 
Arcite address himself to Mars, Palamon to Venus, and Emilia to 
Diana. 

The death of Arcite is told by Chaucer with great pathos ; and 
the address of the dying man to Emilia is marked by truth and sim- 
plicity infinitely touching : — 

" What is this world ? what asken men to have ? 
Now with his love, now in his colde grave — 
Alone — withouten any company. 
Farewell, my sweet, farewell, mine Emily! 
And softe take me in your armes tway 
For love of God, and hearkeneth what I say. 
I have here with my cousin Palamon 
Had strife and rancour many a day agone 
For love of you, and for my jealousy ; 
And Jupiter to wis my soule gie, 
To speaken of a servant properly, 
With alle circumstances truely. 
That is to say, truth, honour, and knighthead. 
Wisdom, humbless, estate, and high kindred, 
Freedom, and all that longeth to that art. 
So Jupiter have of my soule part. 
As in this world right now ne know I none 
So worthy to be lov'd as Palamon, 
That serveth you, and will do all his life ; 
And if that ever ye shall be a wife. 
Forget not Palamon, the gentle many 



264 Appendix 



The Time-Analysis of the Play 

I am not aware that anybody has attempted to make a " time- 
analysis " of this play ; but it seems to me to require eight days on 
the stage, with intervals, arranged as follows : — 
Day I. Act I. sc. i. 

Interval. Theseus sends defiance to Creon (i. 2. 89) 
and hostilities are to begin immediately (105). 
Day 2. Act I. sc. ii. and iii. 
'* 3. Act I. sc. iv. and v. 

Interval. Theseus returns to Athens, with Palamon 
and Arcite as prisoners. 
" 4. Act II. sc. i. and ii. 

" 5. Act II. sc. iii.-vi. This may be regarded as the day after 
Arcite is banished, and on which the *' games " of " wrestling and run- 
ning " (ii. 3. 57, 62) are to occur. It is Emilia's " birthday " (ii. 5. 
36), and Theseus says that "to-morrow" (51) is May-day. From 
what one of the Countrymen has said (ii. 3. 27), we should infer 
that an interval of at least a day is to intervene (as he expects to 
be ploughing on the morrow), but we must assume that Theseus 
is right as to the date. 
Day 6. Act III. sc. i.-vi. 

Interval. Theseus (iii. 6. 291) has ordered the two 
Kinsmen to return to their own country, and " within a 
month " to return for the contest which is to settle their 
quarrel and the fate of Emilia. Two scenes of the un- 
derplot (iv. I and 3) must be supposed to occur during 
this interval. The former (iv. i) would appear to be 
on the day after Day 6, as the Gaoler then first learns 
from his Friend what had then occurred concerning the 
Kinsmen (iv. i. 3 fol.). The other scene (iv. 3) must 
be somewhat later in the interval, as the first speeches 
of the Doctor and the Gaoler clearly indicate. 



Appendix 265 

Day 7. Act IV. sc. ii. On this day, as we learn, the " two con- 
tending lovers are returned " with their " fair knights." Theseus 
gives orders for preparing the field for the contest, which we may 
suppose will take place the next day. 

Day 8. Act V. sc. i.-iv. 

Scattered through the play are certain indications of *' long time " 
(particularly in the underplot) which are not easily reconcilable 
with the above arrangement of days and intervals, but may be ex- 
plained by the "two-clock" system of "dramatic time." For in- 
stance, in ii. 4, the Gaoler's Daughter implies that Palamon had 
been in prison for a considerable period after the banishment of 
Arcite. She refers (22) to bringing him water in the mornings, 
and to his kissing her once, after which she loved her lips the 
better for " ten days," etc. ; but we cannot suppose any such interval 
between this scene and the preceding. Again, in iii. 2, she implies 
that there has been an interval of at least "two days" since she 
assisted in the escape of Palamon, but that is impossible. Other 
inconsistencies of the kind the reader will have no difficulty in de- 
tecting. They are not so frequent, however, as in many of Shake- 
speare's own plays. 

List of Characters in the Play 

The numbers in parentheses indicate the lines the characters 
have in each scene. 

Theseus: i. 1(65), 4(44); ii. 5(26); iii. 5(10), 6(62); iv. 
2(20) ; v. 1(17), 3(50), 4(37). Whole no. 331. 

Pirithous:\, 1(3), 3(10); ii. sCh) ; iii- 5(4), 6(ii) ; iv. 
2(34) ; V. 1(2), i(^z)^ 4(44). y<^o\^ no. 125. 

Arcite: 1.2(47); ii- 2(117), 3(39), 5(25) ; iii- i(79)» 3(47)» 
6(107) ; v. 1(43), 3(4), 4(6). Whole no. 514. 

Palamon: i. 2(73); ii. 2(165); iii- 1(62), Z(^Z^^, 6(131); v. 
1(80), 4(46). Whole no. 593. 

Valerius : i. 2(12). Whole no. 12. 



266 Appendix 

Herald : i. 4(5). Whole no. 5. 

Gaoler: ii. 1(31), 2(21); iv. 1(33), 3(12); v. 2(24), 4(3). 
Whole no. 124. 

Wooer: ii. 1(5) ; iv. 1(63), 3(4) ; v. 2(33). Whole no. 105. 

Doctor : iv. 3(48) ; v. 2(44). Whole no. 92. 

Brother to Gaoler : iv. i(io). Whole no. 10. 

G err old : iii. 5(106). Whole no. 106. 

\st Country77ia7i : ii. 3(11) ; iii. 5(4). Whole no. 15. 

2d Country77ian : ii. 3(21) ; iii. 5(9). Whole no. 30. 

3^ Coimtryj7ia7i : ii. 3(16) ; iii. 5(9). Whole no. 25. 

4//^ Countryman: ii. 3(12) ; iii. 5(5). Whole no. 17. 

Tabor er : iii. 5(1). Whole no. I. 

B avian : iii. 5(1). Whole no. I. 

1st Frieftd : iv. 1(27). Whole no. 27. 

2d Friend : iv. 1(22). Whole no. 22. 

Ge7itle77ian : iv. 2(4). Whole no. 4. 

Messenger : iv. 3(44) ; v. 2(4), 4(1). Whole no. 49. 

\st Se7'vant : v. 3(13). Whole no. 13. 

1st Knight : v. 4(9). Whole no. 9. 

2d Knight : v. 4(6). Whole no. 6. 

2,d Knight : v. 4(3). Whole no. 3. 

Boy : i. 1(24). Whole no. 24. 

Hippolyta: i. 1(21), 3(44); "• 5(6); "i. 5(0» 6(15); iv. 
2(6) ; V. 3(9). Whole no. 102. 

E77iilia: i. 1(22), 3(56); ii- 2(28), 5(13); iii. 5(2), 6(50) ; 
iv. 2(69) ; V. 1(37), 3(88), 4(3). Whole no. 368. 

Gaoler' s Daughter : ii. 1(26), 4(33), 6(39); iii. 2(38), 4(26), 
5(25) ; iv. 1(43), 3(40) ; V. 2(57). Whole no. 327. 

1st Queen : i. 1(64), 4(1), 5(12). Whole no. 77. 

2d Queen : i. 1(40), 4(2), 5(11). Whole no. 53. 

2,d Queen : i. 1(34), 4(2), 5(14)- Whole no. 50. 

Wo77ian : ii. 2(14). Whole no. 14. 

Nell : iii. 5(1). Whole no. I. 

" Prologue'''' : (32). Whole no. 32. 



Appendix 267 

''Epilogue'' : (i8). Whole no. i8. 
"^//" .• iv. 1(3) ; V. 3(4). Whole no. 7. 
Artesitis is on the stage in i. I, but does not speak. 

In the above enumeration, parts of lines are counted as whole 
lines, making the total in the play greater than it^ is. The actual 
number of lines in each scene is as follows: prol. (32) ; i. 1(234), 
2(116), 3(97), 4(49), 5(16); ii. 1(62), 2(281), 3(83), 4(33), 
5(64), 6(39); iii. 1(123), 2(38), 3(53), 4(26), 5(162), 6(309); iv. 
1(154), 2(156), 3(104); V. 1(173), 2(112), 3(150), 4(137); epil. 
(18). Whole number in the play, 2821. 



INDEX OF WORDS AND PHRASES 
EXPLAINED 



absolute (= perfect) , 204 
abuse young lays, 241 
advance (= raise), 183, 

i95> 245 
advertised (accent), 212 
affect (= love), 209 
affections, 197 
aglets, 217 
Alcides, 250 
allow (= approve), 210 
allowance, 252 
alow, 221 
anatomy, 242 
angel (=bird), 179 
antic, 229 

anjr means, by, 208 
a-pieces, 227 
appointment, 200, 211 
approved (= proved) , 237 
apricock, 207 
arm your prize, 251 
armed long and round, 

233 
armipotent, 240 
arraignment, no more, 

197 
arrose, 255 
Artesius, 186 
as dangerous as poor, 197 
aspect (accent), 249 
attend for grey approach- 

ers, 252 
attending, 229 
attributes (accent), 193 
auburn, 234 
Aulis, 188 

baldrick, 233 
bank (= seashore), 189 
Banks's horse, 246 
bare (= threadbare) , 191 
barley-break, 236 
battle struck, 200 
Bavian, 219 
beast-eating, 224 
beastly, 216 
becking, 195 



Bellona, 182 

bells dim, 178 

bends his fist, 211 

beneficial, 224 

bent brow, 213 

bent (engine), 249 

better lined, 203 

bevy, 229 

blazon, 211 

blood (= kin), 193 

blood-siz'd, 183 

blow the nearness out, 

238 
blubbered, 188 
boding raven, 179 
bones (for music), 222 
bonfires (trisyllable), 241 
Bonny Robin, 230 
bottles (of hay), 247 
bow not, 226 
bowling, 231 
brake, 213 
bravery, 235 
break, 217, 221 
break the head, 192 
breast (= voice), 250 
bride-house, 180 
broached, 196 
Broom, The, 230 
business (trisyllable), 229 
but, 248 

buttons (=buds), 210 
buz, 222 

calkins, 252 

Capaneus (accent), 181 
carack, 218 
carve her, 236 
cestron, 239 
changeling, 232 
chapel (verb). 181 
chared, 214 
charging-staff, 235 
charmers, 255 
chase, 242 
cheerly, 231 
cheers (= faces), 202 

269 



chop (= exchange), 211 
choris, 222 
chough hoar, 179 
clean, 234 
clear-spirited, 193 
close (= secret), 242 
coil, 209 

cold as old Saturn, 253 
come cut and longtail, 

245 
compassion (metre), 229 
compelled (accent), 212 
concealments, 242 
conceived, 192 
confound (= destroy) , 238 
convent (verb), 200, 203 
conversation, 206 
cords, drams, knives, etc., 

185 
corslet (verb), 187 
counsel of night, 212 
count, 197 
course (= sail), 218 
cozener (play upon), 211 
cradles (of oxlips), 178 
cranks, 191 
creation, 182 
Creon, 180 
cruel-fearful, 257 
cry (= pack), 210 
cunning (= skill), 197 
curious (= elaborate) , 233 
currant (play upon), 189 
cut (= horse), 219 

dare, 196 
dearly, 252 
defier, 242 
delivered, 204 
deliverly, 220 
depart (noun), 196 
depart (= part), 203 
devils roar, 210 
Dido, 235 
dim, 178 
disensanity, 219 
disposed, 234 



270 Index of Words and Phrases 



disseat, 254 

distinguish villager, 222 
dividual, 198 
dole. 202 
domine, 208 
doucets, 224 
down-a, 235 
duke, 181 

edict (accent), 225 
eftsoons, 211 
engine, 249 
engraffed, 236 
enormous, 240 
envy, 249 

et opus exegi, etc., 222 
even (verb), 200 
even jump, 191 
eye of Phoebus, 181 

fairer spoken, 209 
faith (= self-reliance), 192 
fall (transitive), 188 
fancy (=love), 233, 250, 

255 
farces (= fills) , 235 
fatuus, 221 

favour (in dance), 220 
fear (= fear for), 217 
fear (= frighten), 225 
fere, 242 
ferula, 222 
file and quality, 244 
fire-ill, 221 

fires (dissyllable) ,210, 238 
flurted, 191 
foison, 240 

for (= as regards), 183 
for (= because), 192, 252 
forward, 206 
frampal, 221 
frize, 220 
full of bread, 186 

gawds, 233 

general of ebbs and flows, 

244 
gentility, 180 
gentle token, 211 
gently (trisyllable), 206 
germane, 238 
gipsy (in contempt), 233 
glade, 229 
glass of ladies, 183 
glister, 240 
globy, 242 



go to law with, 250 

God's lid, 250 

goodness (= good luck), 

206 
grace, 255 
grand-guard, 225 
grave (= bury) , 206 
graved (= furrowed), 249 
green, 236 
green eye, 243 
grey-eyed, 234 
griefs (= grievances), 211 
grise, 205 
ground-piece, 184 
guilty to, 249 
gyves, 212 

had as lief, 183 

hail (play upon), 222 

half-sights, 250 

happily (= haply), 197 

happiness, 209 

hardly, 251 

have at thy life, 225 

have with ye, 208 

heavens, 250 

he 's (= he shall), 219 

heavy (= sad) , 202 

her bells dim, 178 

Hercules (pronunciation), 

182 
hilding, 221 
his (= its), 229, 249 
hoar (chough), 179 
hobby-horse, 246 
hold, 225 

honesty (= chastity), 245 
horn-book, 208 
house-clogs, 211 
howlet, 221 
human title, 189 
huntress (= Diana), 241 

i' the nick, 221 

importment, 198 

imports (= concerns), 187 

in (= into), 196 

in plight, 212 

innocent (=idiot), 198, 229 

intelligence, 194 

it's, 186 

its, 193 

ivy-tods, 233 

jadery, 253 
jane, 220 



jaw (verb), 214 
joy (= rejoice) , 233 
jump (=just), 191 

keep touch, 208, 217 

keen'st, 231 

kind (= nature), 248 

knacks, 211 

knights (female), 243 

knolls, 185 

Lady Fortune, 211 

lag hours, 251 

lards it, 235 

large (= loose), 241 

larks'-heels, 179 

laund, 210 

lets (noun), 224 

lewdly, 232 

liberal, 241 

Light o' Love, 247 

like the time, 255 

limiter, 239 

lined, 203 

loaden, 205 

lock, 187 

looked (= looking), 189 

loose (= lose) , 230 

Lord of May, 223 

lovers (=friends) , 239, 255 

loves, 257 

maculate, 244 

maiden pinks, 177 

main goodness, 206 

make death a devil, 227 

make lanes, 200 

make pursuit (play upon), 

192 
makes no cry, 208 
manage (noun), 253 
mankind (accent), 207 
marigolds, 178 
martialist, 191 
meditance, 185 
medius fidius, 220 
Meleager, 220 
mere (= absolute), 192, 

206 
mickle, 223 
miller's mare, 247 
mind (= think of), 229 
minstrels (trisyllable), 230 
miscarry (= perish), 228, 

250 
moiety, 189 



Index of Words and Phrases 271 



moped. 214 
more (= greater) , 206 
more bigger looked, 189 
morris, 208, 223 
musit, 212 

name's opinion, 226 

Nemean (accent), 182 

nor ne'er, 208 

next (= nearest), 215 

nice, 247 

not right (= insane), 229 

note (= stigma) , 252 

O fair, O sweet (song), 

230 
of (= from) , 204 
offence (=blow), 249 
offices, 215 
old importment's bastard, 

198 
on (= one), 193, 198 
on end he stands, 254 
operance, 197 
opinion (= reputation) , 

226 
ospreys, 185 
our (dissyllable), 193 
out (= astray), 191 
out of square, 237 
out-breasted, 250 
out-dure, 224 
owest (=ownest), 183, 252 
owgh, 231 
oxlips, 178 

parlously, 208 

peace, to a, 222 

Pelops' shoulder, 231 

pelting, 207 

pencilled (= painted) , 248 

penner, 223 

pen'worth, 236 

Philomels, 250 

pie (= magpie), 180 

piece (contemptuous), 221 

piece of silver, 235 

pieces (= works), 196 

Pigmies, 218 

pinch 'em, 25X 

plantain (for wounds), 192 

play (= not work), 208 

play-feres, 237 

plum-broth, 220 

plurisy, 240 

pointed (=appointed),244 



poise (noun), 254 

polled, 241 

port (= gate), 244 

port (verb), 238 

posies, 230 

power on, 183 

prayers (dissyllable), 238 

precipitance, 186 

present, 251 

presently, 205 

pretended (= intended), 

188 
pretenders, 244 
price (= reward), 248 
prime (= chief), 190 
primrose, 177 
prim'st, 249 
proin, 227 

proper (= comely), 210 
Proserpine, 236 
purchase (= win), 210 
purger, 181 
pyramid, 228, 250 

quaint, 177 
question, 249 
qui passa, 222 
quit, 212, 224, 252 
quousque tandem, etc., 
220 

rable, 222 

rarely, 230 

raven, boding, 179 

ravished, 205 

raze you, 180 

reck (spelling), 214 

record (accent) , 206 

records (= recorders) , 242 

redemption, 250 

regiment, 237 

repletion, 191 

require (= ask), 183, 239 

retain (= employ), 191 

rheum, 251 

right (= downright), 226 

rings of rushes, 230 

rinsing (spelling), 186 

roast eggs, 209 

ruins, 190 

run her, 218 

sacrifices, 239 

Saturn, 253 

say (= speak), 257 

scape, 229 



scurril, 244 

secure (= careless), 186 

sempster, 221 

sequent trace, 192 

servant, 183, 249 

set off (= offset), 249 

several (= separate), 210 

sib, 193 

silent hanging, 224 

since I have known fight's 

fury, etc., 200 
sinister (= left), 249 
sire (dissyllable), 210 
skiff (verb), 197 
skip (= ignore), 211 
skipt, 241 

slanderous cuckoo, 179 
smallness (of voice), 229 
smell of prison, 212 
sod, 196 

soon (= easy), 225 
sotted, 233 
sow of lead, 250 
speed (= success), 196 
spoom, 218 
sports, 196 
spread her, 181 
stammers 'em, 204 
stamp (play upon), 189 
state (= estate), 236 
state of nature, 215 
stead (verb), 180 
still among. 237 
stomach, 213 
stool-ball, 247 
store (= abundance), 196 
strait, 225 
strewings. 204 
strike (measure), 247 
styled it, 183. 
success (accent) , 188, 249 
success (= issue), 237 
surfeit, 188 
swarth, 232 
synod, 187 

taborer, 220 
tackle, 209 

tailor (woman's), 230 
take hands, 187 
talons (spelling), 180 
taste to you, 252 
tasteful, t88 
tediosity, 219 
tell (= count), 222, 253, 
254 



272 



Index of Words and Phrases 



tender (verb), 238 
terrene, 196 
that (= so that), 229 
thereby hangs a tale, 217 
this world 's a city, etc., 

203 
thyme (spelling), 177 
tilters, 250 

timely (= early), 205 
*t is odds, 209 
to (=for), 227 
to (= in comparison with) , 

194 
together, 215 
token (play upon), 189 
too-timely, 205 
too-too, 252 
top the bowling, 231 
tottering Fortune, 262 
touch, keep, 208, 217 
toy (= finery), 197 
toy (= whim). 253 
trace, 192, 220 
transported, 181 
travail (spelling), 176 
tresses hanging, 176 
trick o' the hip, 209 



trussed up, 218 
turns ye, 246 
twinning, 187, 206 

uncandied, 183 

unclasp, 245 

undertaker, 182 

undo with thunder, 234 

unwappered, 252 

urn (verb), 181 

uses (= exercises) , 206 

vast field, 240 
vengeance and revenge, 

181 
vengeance (trick), 209 
Ver, 177 
videlicet, 245 
virginals, 216 
virtue (= valour), 225 
visitating, 186 
voluble, 193 

want (= lack), 189 
ward, 249 
warlike maid, 234 
washed a tile, 220 



weavers, 208 
weeds, 191 
weep unto, 240 
weigh (anchor), 231 
well disposed, 234 
what (= who), 200 
wheaten garland, 177 
where (= whereas), 225 
whereto, 182 
whether, 228, 233 
whipstock, 194 
who (omitted), 192 
whoo-bub, 210 
widows to our woes, 187 
Willow, willow, willow, 

229 
wind-fanned snow, 243 
wine and bread, 221 
wink (= shut the eyes), 

249 , 
wmner s oak, 234 
wise (= discreet), 210 
woe worth, 227 
wood (= mad), 231 
wrinkled, 184 

you (expletive), 180 



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